


The Promise to be Fulfilled

by matoroshika



Category: Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan
Genre: Bottom Levi Ackerman, Dominant Eren Yeager, Dominant Erwin Smith, Eren Yeager Has Anger Issues, Eventual Smut, F/F, F/M, Female Levi Ackerman, Fluff and Angst, Fluff and Smut, Hange Zoë & Levi Are Best Friends, Hurt/Comfort, Levi is Bad At Feelings (Shingeki no Kyojin), Levi is secretly a female, Levi/Eren Yeager Smut, M/M, Past Levi/Erwin Smith, Power Bottom Levi (Shingeki no Kyojin), Submissive Levi (Shingeki no Kyojin), Top Eren Yeager, Top Erwin Smith, Unplanned Pregnancy, erenxlevi - Freeform, ereri, levixeren - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-02-14
Updated: 2021-03-12
Packaged: 2021-03-15 10:34:05
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 5
Words: 45,092
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29434662
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/matoroshika/pseuds/matoroshika
Summary: (Season 3 spoilers will be in this fanfic)“Levi, right now there are more important matters at hand. But I promise you, after I get to that basement and uncover the secrets of our world...We can start something new.”He could only remember those words as he watched the casket lower into the ground in front of him.Humanity’s strongest mourns for his past lover and is left with his child growing in his belly. Eren feels guilty and tries his best to help the widowed Levi.(Past Eruri, eventual Ereri, Smut, Angst, and fluff. Please read tags before continuing)
Relationships: Levi Ackerman/Eren Yeager, Levi Ackerman/Erwin Smith, Levi Ackerman/Erwin Smith/Eren Yeager, Past Erwin Smith/Levi Ackerman
Comments: 30
Kudos: 126





	1. Remembrance

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After losing Erwin in the final battle, Levi struggles to keep his head lifted as he keeps having flashbacks about the past.  
> 

The captain sat on a wooden chair by the round table in his room, sipping on his favorite tea in an attempt to calm himself down like always.  
The scouts had just returned yesterday from their mission to seal up the hole in wall Maria and the Shiganshina district. Which would have gone smoothly if it weren’t for Reiner, Zeke and Bertolt’s last efforts to snag Eren. 

Levi noticed his hand starting to shake and put the teacup down on the little plate. He put his hand on his lap, holding it down with the other.  
Trying not to think about everything that had happened only made him think about it further. If only he had gotten to Zeke faster, Erwin might have still been here today. 

He still didn’t regret his choice by any means. As painful as it was, the time had come to let him rest. He has fulfilled his duty as commander, but it pained Levi to think that he couldn’t take him to the basement like he had wanted this whole time. He kept wondering what would have happened after Erwin found out the truth- would his mind finally be at rest? Or would his next dream be to mend things between the Eldians and the Marlyans? 

But it mattered not, since he was no longer in this world. He is at peace, with his fellow comrades. A part of Levi thought that maybe this is what he wanted, by putting himself on the front lines time after time despite being commander and this time- despite having only one arm. Maybe he wanted to go before his dreams came true, because what would happen after then? The harsh reality would hit, and things had gotten ten times more complicated and darker. Since the only thing that happened is that the cage for the Eldians got bigger, and now they had more enemies waiting for them. 

Levi remembered the man himself had looked tired, and guilty even. He had known that his selfishness was causing so many deaths, and that he had to throw away his humanity in order to become the great commander he was. Bringing him back would have been cruel- he would have had to face the backslash for only bringing back eight scouts. He would have gone to the basement and discovered that they were nowhere close to getting the freedom they wanted. 

There was a sudden knock at the door. 

“Captain? May I come in?” Eren said nervously, his palms sweating a bit.

Levi sighed, leaning back against his chair.  
“Yes. But make it quick, we need to leave for the funeral soon.” 

The wooden door opened, Eren walked in and closed it behind him before approaching the table. He looked tense and didn’t seem like he was going to sit down even though there was an empty chair by the table across from him. 

“I wanted to formally apologize for... yelling at you and putting you under pressure. But.. I also wanted to thank you, for bringing Armin back.” Eren said as he looked down at the small man, who definitely looked more gloomier than usual. 

“Eren, that was my decision. Don’t think for a second that I did this for you and because of what you said. So stop taking responsibility- that’s my job, as a captain.” He said coldly, but also lovingly in his own way. 

“I know. It’s just.. I know everybody else apart from me and Mikasa seem to be upset at you and disagreed with your decision. And I feel like I’m respons-“ Eren was cut off.

“You’re not responsible. I gave Erwin what he needed, not what the people wanted. If they want to be upset at me then so be it. They are just wasting their energy in fussing over something that cannot be changed.” He took another sip of his tea. 

“..Right. Well, thank you captain.” He bowed a little before turning to leave. 

“Eren, don’t forget that after this funeral, you, Mikasa and Armin are to go to the capital for a court hearing. I don’t know how long you will be kept under their watch, and I need you to know it could be hours to days.” He wasn’t going to even mention the long meetings he will probably have with the said superiors. He knew he was going to get told off, but it still wouldn’t make him regret his choice.

“Yes Captain.” Eren sighed, heading for the door and leaving. He had about an hour to get ready and bring some spare clothes with him for the stay after. 

It didn’t take long for Levi to finish his tea, and once he did it was time to get dressed for the funeral. He couldn’t wear his casual clothes, and so stood up to head over to his closet.  
He opens the doors and takes a look in- the first thing he sees is Erwin’s black blazer. The jacket that Levi had found all those years ago laying around and decided to use it since it had been cold. He knew it was Erwin’s due to the few strands of short blond hair by the collar and also the scent in general. But shortly after Erwin had laughed about how it suited him and was glad that he liked it so much- and let Levi keep it. Of course it was a bit big for him, which is why he liked to drape it over his shoulders. But with each washing session, it seemed to have shrunk little by little to the point where putting it over his shoulders was no longer the only option. 

He takes out his grey dress shirt, the blazer, and a pair of black skinny jeans. He sets them all down on the bed- and noticed something slipped out of the pocket of the blazer.  
He bends down and picks it up, quickly realizing that this was an unused bandage roll. One that Erwin had given to him the last time he wore this jacket because they had been running low on bandages and the next batch wouldn’t be here for another two weeks. 

Looking at it brought back a memory he thought he had long forgotten... 

\--------------------

>>Flashback<<

A few weeks had gone by since Levi went on his first mission beyond the walls with his two best friends Isabel and Farlan- who were no longer with him. It was difficult getting used to not having them around, but one of the scout members- Hange Zoe, was quick to try and cheer him up.  
It was hard to adjust since Erwin was suddenly given the position as commander, and so many things were changing during this time period. Such as battle methods, use of resources, locations of bases, and working positions. Levi was given the title of captain, and Hange the title of squad leader and also head scientist as she likes to say. 

Today had been one of the normal days. Levi had done his cleaning, attended his meetings, and started scavenging the scouts for potential candidates to be in his squad that Erwin gave permission for him to have. Levi was able to handpick the soldiers himself, and so far he had found a couple that may be worthy of being in a higher rank.  
After a long day of monitoring soldiers, he heads back to his room to grab somethings for a nice relaxing shower. It was a hot summer day, and sweating was Levi’s least favorite thing to do. 

But as soon as he walked in his room, he had a feeling someone had been in here. He was quickly on alert as he headed straight for his bed. He had a small box underneath one of the loose wooden planks under the bed that had some of his important belongings within it.  
He reaches under, lifts the plank and pulls out the box. He takes off the lid, only to find that the box was empty. 

“Looking for something?” 

Erwin’s voice was heard from the entrance of his room. Levi immediately stood up, glaring daggers at him as he held up the roll of bandages. At this time, he was still trying to warm up to him- and this was not helping. He mentally cursed himself for not finding a better hiding place for his box.  
The commander walked into the room, closing the door behind him. “Don’t worry, you’re not in trouble.. yet.” He walks further into the room and stands with confidence as he looks down at Levi with those deep blue eyes. 

“Ever since I became commander, I’ve been strict on making sure our recourses and deliveries stay on schedule. However.. recently I’ve been getting word that bandages were going missing. I have asked scout members to try and find this thief, but it seems like the thief is too good to be caught.” Erwin looked at the roll in his hand. “It may not seem like much, but this can save people’s lives. So of course I had to find the thief and put an end to this stealing. I didn’t think it would be you- but then I remembered what you did for a living in the undergrounds.” He eyes him again, as if seeing right through him. 

“So tell me Levi, why have you been stealing these?” Erwin watches him closely and could clearly see the panic behind his expression. He had learned to read Levi like a book during the past few weeks. 

“..I’m injured.”

“Then go to the med bay and have a nurse take care of you.” 

“It’s fine. I’m healing.” He averts his gaze just a little. Not enough for a stranger to notice, but enough for Erwin to notice.

“..You’ve been stealing these for weeks. If you still need bandages you should have it checked out.” Erwin said strictly. 

“I’m healed enough.” 

“Then show me.” 

In that moment, he had no other choices. He knew this man well enough to know that he isn’t just going to drop this. He will realize if he kept stealing, and he will take note if he doesn’t go to the nurse to confirm an injury and get suspicious. There was nowhere to run, and nowhere to hide when it came down to Erwin. 

He hesitantly, and very slowly, took off his scouts jacket and neck scarf. Tossing them on the bed before beginning to undo the buttons of his dress shirt.  
Erwin could sense something was very off about Levi. The smaller man had always been confident about all of his actions in the past, and this was the second time Erwin was watching his emotions leak through the cracks of the wall he had built. 

Levi takes his shirt off and tosses that on the bed as well, motioning to the side of his chest where the bandages were wrapped tightly all the way around. 

“I have a cut here on my side that’s still healing. It happened during training when one of the blades snapped.” He could only hope Erwin would buy it, but a part of him already knew this man was too smart. 

“The order was to show me Levi. And if you can’t do that then I’ll have to have the nurse look at you.” He narrowed his eyes a little. 

“….”

Levi let himself give up. There was no fighting Erwin. Why was he still hiding this anyway? It wasn’t like he was still in the undergrounds. So little by little, he began to unwrap the bandages. A small part of him hoped Erwin wouldn’t see too much since it was dark, and his room was only lit up by a few candles and a lantern- and the moonlight shining from the window.

When the whole thing came off, Erwin’s eyes widened for a moment. 

Levi hid his eyes under the shadow of his fringe, refusing to make eye contact as he let the bandages drop to the floor. 

“So there is no injury.”

“No.” 

“....”  
After an awkward silence, Erwin sighs and walks over to him, grabbing his hand and handing him the fresh roll he had found in the box.  
“Levi, know that this changes nothing if that had been something you were worried about.” His eyes moved from his chest, to back at the petite face of the captain. 

“Why are you keeping this a secret?” He couldn’t stop his curiosity for getting the best of him and blurted out the question. 

“..You really think being a little female Ackerman in the undergrounds was going to do me any good?” Levi looks away fully now. “I would have been kidnapped and sold to some pervert if anyone knew. And if that didn’t happen, I’d be forced into prostitution. And live for the rest of my life fighting to not be raped.”  
“The part of town I came from was the worst. So my mom named me Levi and told me I was a boy- she raised me that way until she died of a sexually transmitted disease.” He takes a small step away from the commander, holding onto the bandage roll tightly. “I don’t know what it’s like up here, but I’m not believing for a second that everyone here is good. If word about me spreads-“ 

“It won’t Levi.” He pauses for a moment, just looking at him.  
“It’s your choice to make. You can continue to hide this if that is what you wish, so long as it doesn’t affect you in the battlefield- which I’ve seen that it doesn’t seem to be.” 

For some reason, Erwin seeing it as unimportant made Levi feel a little better. 

“Just let me know if you decide to keep things as it is. I’ll be sure to put in an order for an extra box of bandages monthly.” The commander simply smiled at him in the gentlest way possible.  
“You’re also free to use my personal shower if need be-“ Erwin was cut off.

“Why are you doing this..” Levi seemed confused. “Why are you not mad..” 

“Because this is your choice. It’s not a choice I will make for you. I won’t tell anyone unless your life is endangered and the nurse needs to be aware. But so far, you’ve been relatively good at taking care of yourself.”

“So it doesn’t matter to you then?” The curious teen asked. 

“As long as you stay focused during battles and get your duties done, it will not matter. You are still captain Levi, and you have great talent. I know you will do just fine, if you keep it a secret or not.” 

Erwin then left without another word, leaving Levi speechless in his own room. Needless to say, he quite quickly warmed up to him within the past following days. 

>>End of Flashback<<

\--------------------

He felt numb as he got himself dressed for the funeral. Walking without fully paying attention to the carriage and staying more quiet than usual as he entered. Hange sat across from him and within seconds it began to move.

“What’s the military police and garrison doing here..” Levi couldn’t help but ask, since he noticed the extra carriages. 

“They all decided to come to pay their respects to Erwin. The police however, some of them have been assigned to escort Eren, Mikasa and Armin to court after the funeral.” Hange said plainly, sighing.

“I should be the one going, not those brats. If they want to get pissed about Erwin dying they can come and talk to me, and me only.” Levi said as he stared out the window of the carriage as it moved along.

“There is a meeting later today that you and I will need to attend. I’m sure that will be our punishment.” Hange frowns, looking down at her lap with her hands intertwined.  
“I wouldn’t worry too much about it. There is nothing they can really do to any of us. We are the last members of the survey corps, you are humanity’s strongest, I’m the new commander and we have two titan shifters. They will need us if they want to stand a chance against Marly.”

Levi nods in agreement but doesn’t seem too happy about that either.  
“I don’t plan on dying until I kill Zeke.”

Hange was nothing but worried about her best friend- the last close friend she has at the moment. She too was still mourning over Moblit’s death, as well as Erwin’s death. But she had never seen Levi like this- constantly averting his gaze, his body extremely tense and eyes seeming more lifeless than usual.  
She had done a bit of her own research about the Ackerman bond, and it was quite easy to tell that Levi was in fact bonded to Erwin. She is positive that most of it wasn’t even instinctive to be honest, it was something that happened gradually overtime. While as with Mikasa, she has realized the bond seems more obsessive. And according to Eren, it was something that just clicked within her the day he met her. 

“If we do ever capture Zeke, our best choice is to feed him to someone else.” Hange added, catching Levi’s eye twitch ever so slightly. 

“Tch..” He looked pissed for a split second.  
Levi didn’t know what this feeling was- with each passing hour his need to kill Zeke was getting stronger and stronger. Back when his whole squad was wiped out by the female Titan- he remembered being very upset, but he was able to control himself and think clearly. Right now thinking clearly was difficult, and he had impulsive desire’s within him.  
He knew when to leave the battlefield when fighting the female Titan, and he knew his priorities during then. But right now, all he could think about was killing Zeke.

“How are you feeling Levi?” Hange had to try- she has tried multiple times before to talk to Levi about his own mental wellbeing, but he always brushed it off or said he was fine. 

“I don’t need you to be a therapist, you need to focus on being commander.” Levi said plainly, his gaze still averted.

“Just because I’m commander doesn’t mean you’re not my friend Levi. I care about you, and I want to know how you’re feeling.” She struggled with her words for a second, wanting to joke around since it was her default behavior for when Levi seemed upset. But now was really not the time.  
“I’m feeling like this conversation is unimportant and that we need to start planning on what to do with our friends on the other side of the ocean.” He crosses his arms, sinking back on his seat. He was retreating.

Hange wasn’t going to push it any further and was quiet for the rest of the ride there.

\--------------------

Levi was numb throughout the whole thing. He followed the crowd, he let himself disassociate and couldn’t even hear the words mumbling out of people’s mouths as they said their speeches.  
He wished he had something to say as well, but he was still very speechless. He missed Erwin, and that’s all there was to it for him. He couldn’t think of words to even describe how meaningful his life had been when he had met him. How much he had meant to him, and how much he had trusted him. 

No one in this world could ever begin to comprehend the bond he shared with Erwin. He had gone from hating him, following him out of curiosity, learning to respect him, trust him, and then loving him.

Erwin was determined, resilient but also very selfish. Which is why it was important for Levi to stay by his side- Levi was too caring and could sometimes knock some sense into the man. But most of the time, even when having no idea what Erwin was planning- he could trust him, because in the end their goals were the same; saving humanity and gaining freedom.

The man had singlehandedly given him a second chance at life, brought him to the surface, gave him a purpose, and showed him what true love felt like.

He watched people in black suits stand by the hole in-front of the greatest gravestone in the graveyard, speaking about how they respected him. But to Levi, it was all just bullshit. 

They didn’t know the real Erwin.

\--------------------

>>Flash back<<

It was around midnight, the final night before everyone would leave for the big mission; sealing the holes in the walls and reclaiming their land. But of course, everyone knew there was going to be a fight. Without a doubt, enemies would be waiting on the other side to eliminate the scouts and kidnap Eren.

Levi was laying in bed, unable to sleep as he kept thinking about the possibilities. 

He didn’t want Erwin to go. 

He had made multiple attempts throughout the past days to convince Erwin not to go, but the man was not going to change his mind.  
Erwin can’t even use his gear or hold two blades. If any enemy got to him he would be dead in a split second. Levi was positive that man wasn’t going to have Levi stick by him the entire mission. He wouldn’t be able to protect him.

Levi wanted to trust Erwin like he always had. 

But last time he lost an arm.

Then almost got executed.

And now.. he could actually die. 

With only a few scouts members and Titan shifters waiting on the other side, Levi kept hating himself for having little trust in the most important mission in all of history. The one that would matter the most to Erwin. 

He got out of bed and had made up his mind. 

Erwin was fast asleep in his room, laying on his back in his bed. He was never really a deep sleeper- his mind was always thinking, spinning gears and awake. He would often times lay in bed just thinking for a few hours before actually sleeping, but it was just when he was falling asleep that he noticed someone.

Levi flinched as the man’s eyes suddenly snapped open, his one arm lunging forward and hand tightly grabbing his wrist. Completely stopping him from putting something in his glass of water resting on his bedside table.

“Levi, what are you doing?” Erwin narrowed his gaze, keeping his grip around the small wrist.

“This will help you sleep.” Levi didn’t fight him, and just waited. 

“For how long?” Erwin looked at the small bottle of liquid in Levi’s hand- he most likely took it from the med bay.

“For a good few days.” He didn’t let go of the bottle.

Erwin just sighed before moving his hand away from him and sitting up.  
“Levi, I’m going tomorrow. And I hate to do this but this is an order- accept that.”  
The bigger man swung his legs over the side of the bed, sitting tall. 

Levi cursed under his breath and dropped the tiny bottle on the floor and stood there in distress.

There was a long, awkward moment of silence before Erwin pat the empty spot on the bed next to him. Levi sat down next to him on the edge, looking down sadly. To any person, it would be impossible to tell that he was sad- but not to Erwin.  
The way his body slouched a bit, his eyes drooping more followed by the long sigh. Even if he couldn’t see the signs, he could sense it at this point. 

“Levi… Why don’t you want me to go tomorrow?” Erwin knew the answer but asked anyway.

The smaller man finally looked up at him, his eyes seeming a bit glossy.  
“Because you’re going to die.”

“And why is that so bad?” He stared right back at him, his bright blue eyes meeting the pale grey eyes.

“Because humanity needs you.” 

“Humanity needs someone that cares about humanity. The issue is.. you know I’m selfish. I’ve always cared about finding out what’s beyond the walls. It just so happens that that’s what humanity wants as well. If I died, I will only be replaced by someone better.”

“I don’t give a fuck if your desires are selfish or not. That brain of yours benefits humanity and that’s all that matters. We wouldn’t have made it this far if it weren’t for you.” Levi said with a hint of irritation in his tone.

“We may have been able to make it just this far with more lives if someone else had been commander. But the truth is, I still have no regrets about everything that’s happened and am glad I was able to become the commander.” He chuckles lightly, which only makes Levi more irritated. 

“That doesn’t change the fact that humanity needs you right now, and for what’s about to come.” 

“You’re saying if humanity didn’t need me, it would be ok for me to die, right? After we get to that basement-“ Erwin was cut off by a sudden outburst from a very frustrated Levi.

“Shut up right there- I don’t want to hear it.” Levi looked down, clenching his teeth before deciding to speak again. “I’m selfish too Erwin, and I don’t want you to die. I just want to be by your side when you finally achieve your goal- to find out the truth about this world.” 

Erwin was taken back by the comment coming from Levi and hesitated in his response. Within a few seconds, his expression softened.

“What will you do after I find out the truth?” 

“I still want to be by your side.”

“Even if I spend the rest of my days cooped up in a room reading books?” He chuckles again. “Wouldn’t that get quite boring for you?”

“Even if you spend the rest of your days reading books.” He looks back up at him again, and this time the tears in his eyes were obvious. They had yet to fall and were making his vision blurry.

Erwin sensed a second of panic when he saw his eyes. Levi’s expression was unchanging, but he could see that he was finally breaking.  
“Levi…” He reaches his hand out and cups his face, gently caressing his cheek with his thumb. His face was so tiny compared to his hand…his whole body was just so small, and yet he is humanity’s strongest.

Tomorrow was the final day. Erwin would either die trying or make it to the basement and fulfill his dreams. After that? Levi wasn’t so sure, but he had a feeling they would just have bigger problems on their plates.  
He didn’t know what was going to happen, and losing Erwin was something he had feared the day he found himself getting more and more attached to this man. 

“I’ve lost a lot of people who were close to me.” Levi’s voice cracked a little. “Every time we go on a mission I always expect it, but I’m never prepared for the absence that follows.” 

Erwin was going to keep his mouth shut. He was just surprised that Levi was actually opening up to him after what seemed like forever.

“I lost them because I failed to protect them. Every single one of them.” A tear finally escaped his eye. “Let me protect you, please..” He eyes the bottle on the floor.

“Levi, look at me.” Erwin spoke in a soft voice, and he did exactly that. His grey eyes looked up at him.

“Can you trust me one last time?” 

“..Trust often times results in death. And it’s something I can’t risk this time.”

“I’m going to need you to trust me when I say this- I don’t want to die, and partly is because I want to get to the basement. But the other part is because I don’t want to leave you. So even if  
I do fulfill my dreams, I plan to fight for my life so long as you’re here.” A gentle smile appears on Erwin’s face. “My desire to survive is stronger than ever right now, and I want you to trust that desire. Can you do that for me?” 

Levi hesitates, but knew in the end he didn’t have much of a choice.  
“I can.” 

And without any warning, Erwin leans down and kisses him on the lips. Levi doesn’t back away or push him away. Instead, he lets himself shed tears and leans into the kiss.

Erwin kissed him passionately, but he also remained calm and gentle as if the being he was kissing was very fragile. His hand moved from the side of his face to the back of his neck, experimentally pulling him in a little closer. He didn’t use a lot of force, and if Levi didn’t want to he could have easily remained still or moved away. And yet he found him accepting the pull and deepening the kiss. 

The commander slowly moved his tongue across Levi’s lips as if asking for permission to enter. The smaller parted his lips and invited him in, feeling the warmth of his tongue slip past his lips and invade his mouth. 

The kiss started to get messy and more fast paced as Levi tilted his head and helped his partner move his tongue in deeper. They would only part for a split second to gasp in air and go right back to the sloppy kissing. Saliva dripping down their lips and the sound of heavy breaths filling the room. 

Erwin’s breath had the scent and taste of mint, sharp and cool. While Levi’s was sweet as sugar, probably from his last cup of tea. 

Their lips remained connected as Levi shifted carefully to seat himself on Erwin’s lap, wrapping his arms around his neck. He could tell the commander was taken back by Levi’s sudden voluntary movement. He was surprised Levi would crawl onto his lap himself, but then again he knew he liked being very close to him. 

Erwin’s hand moved down to his hip, carefully placing it there and his thumb rubbing circles. The captain eventually had to pull away from the kiss, both of them panting and just looking at each other with a blush on their faces.  
Seeing Levi so flushed and panting with saliva dripping down the corners of his lips made his dick twitch. A string connecting their slick lips as their eyes met.

Erwin was the first to catch his breath, and then spoke. “..Do you want to continue, or stop here?” He asked so humbly, looking at Levi with a soft expression. 

“I want to keep going..” He said in a bit of a slurred tone than usual, looking up at the other man.  
The moonlight from the window hit his face, showing that sharp jawline and making his soft features stand out. Levi always thought Erwin was handsome and looking at him now only made him want him more. 

Erwin responded with a smile before starting to kiss him again. As they made out, he noticed Levi start to grind down on him. It was slow, and uncoordinated at first- but the more Erwin got aroused from the friction, the easier it was for him to coordinate. 

“Mhmm..” Levi moaned into the kiss as he kept grinding, feeling the hard-on rubbing between his legs and getting hotter. The first of many moans to come was music to Erwin’s ears.

Erwin began to grind back, tilting his hips up and adding more pressure to the rubbing. He kept this going for a while, messily French kissing Levi and grinding against him.  
The next time he pulled away for some air, he eyed the empty space on the bed behind him. 

“Lay down, it will be easier for your first time..” He looked back at Levi, who was wiping the saliva from his mouth with the back of his hand and cringing slightly. 

“..wait- how the hell did you know this was my first time?” He eyed him suspiciously. 

“I can tell by your body language that you’re new to this.” Erwin said as he watched Levi take his shoes off before crawling over and laying on his back on the bed. 

“You seem like you’ve done this before. I’m not surprised.” Levi shrugged, and now he was watching as Erwin shifted to sit between his legs. 

“I have, but it had not been out of love. Just mere curiosity and sexual desire.” He moved his hand up to the collar of Levi’s dress shirt.  
“May I?” He asked, insisting that he help him take off his clothes. 

Levi nodded, and Erwin began to unbutton the shirt.  
“I almost forgot..” The man above him chuckled as the bandage around Levi’s chest came into view. 

“..is that going to be a problem?” The shorter nervously glanced up at the commander. 

“Of course not.” He replied, and Levi sighed of relief.  
Erwin’s hand moved over to rest on top of the bandages as he finished unbuttoning the shirt. Feeling along it with his fingertips as if he was stalling. 

“You can take it off.” Levi answered the unspoken question that he knew had been coming. “Actually, let me do it.” He added, since it would be faster with two hands. He sat up a little and was quick to ditch the bandages, tossing them aside and appearing rather confident. 

Levi’s breasts were small and fit his slim frame well. However, he was by no means unfit- he had small, toned muscles and a slight six pack. He wasn’t buff but was in good shape.  
Erwin knew Levi didn’t really use much muscle strength in combat, he was all about speed. But his legs were another story. He had come to realize that he never really used his fists to punch but used his legs to kick people quite hard. He also used his legs to launch himself at a high speed from a tree to the nape of a Titan. 

He remembered when he first saw Levi’s body- half of it at least. He had been skinnier, and muscles less defined. He looked a lot better now in his eyes. 

Erwin quickly stopped staring at his torso and glanced to the side, feeling embarrassed for unintentionally analyzing Levi in bed. It was a bad habit of his to analyze things at first sight. 

“..Ok I know they aren’t big but you don’t have to look away like that shithead..” Levi huffed, seeming offended and feeling.. shy. Erwin had taken a bit of time looking at his body, just to look away. Did he not like it? Was it the six pack? Did his breasts look weird? 

“What? No! No- t..that’s not what-“ Erwin panicked for a moment, stuttering and blushing more. 

Never in his life has Levi seen this man panic like this and then stutter for words. He just looked at him wide eyed, finding it somewhat cute.  
The commander of the scouts, always composed and knows exactly what to say- was struggling to communicate. 

“The last time I saw your body was just after I became commander, which was a while ago. I was just taken back by how much you’ve changed.. and how beautiful you are.” He moved his hand and gently cupped one of his breasts, kneading it as he leaned down and began to kiss him again. 

Levi was impressed by how Erwin became so good at balancing his weight ever since losing his arm. This position mustn’t be easy since his one hand was busy kneading his breast instead of resting on the bed for weight support.

“Ah..” The captain closed his eyes and kissed him back tenderly, parting his lips and letting the commander back in. 

Erwin’s rough hand kept squeezing his breast, his thumb brushing over his nipple as he kneaded in circular motions. His lips began to travel from his mouth, his jaw, and to his neck.  
He gave him gentle pecks, licking on the soft skin around his neck before sucking and nibbling. He had been wanting to mark Levi for so long- he knew it was wrong, but he had always loved the idea and feeling of Levi being his. Of course people already saw Levi as his because he’s always right beside him, but a part of him wanted to take it further and leave marks along his neck to show that this was more than just being professional and work. 

The smaller tilted his head to the opposite side, exposing more of his neck for him. A rather submissive display from humanity’s strongest. Erwin also liked the idea that he was the only person in the world that Levi would likely show this to.  
His slick tongue glazed over different areas of skin from his neck to shoulder, the grip on his breast getting a little stronger as he continued. Levi his hot breaths against his skin, feeling the warm slickness of his tongue. 

He sucked on the skin harder, hearing a soft whine from the other. He was encouraged and kept kissing along his neck but eventually started to venture lower. He found himself staring at his other breast, his tongue teasingly circling his nipple before taking it in his mouth and sucking very gently at first. 

“Mhm.. Erwin.” Levi sneaked open an eye, looking down just to find the man looking right back up him as he suckled on his nipple. He coated it with saliva and kept licking the tip with his tongue, making all wet as he popped it out of his mouth and moved on to the other. 

Levi couldn’t lie- the view of Erwin sucking on his tits was an enjoyable one, and pleasurable one.

After playing with his breasts, Erwin decided to give him some foreplay elsewhere. He sat up, looking down at the panting Levi with a satisfied smile.  
“You look good like this.” He set his hand down on his belt. 

Levi nodded, giving him permission to take everything else off.  
Erwin was so careful and graceful despite only having one arm as he undid Levi’s belt and pulled down his pants, leaving him in nothing but his slightly wet panties. 

He decided to tease him a little more and moved to lay on his stomach, his face resting between the captain’s legs and kissing his thighs lovingly. He moved higher, nestling his face right between his legs till he could feel the two plump lips of his pussy against his face through the fabric of his panties.  
He groaned at the scent of Levi, his tongue licking along the two folds from over the cloth. He could feel it getting damp and wet as he continued, closing his eyes. 

“..Erwin..” He let out another moan as he felt warmth from his crotch. The warm mouth, breaths, tongue, all giving the most sensitive part of his body the attention it had never received. 

He kept licking along his pussy until his panties were soaked with his natural lubricants. He moved his hand up and gently tugged down on one side of the panties. Levi helped him pull them down until they slid off of his legs and were tossed to the side. 

“You’re prefect Levi..” Erwin mumbled before moving his hand up against his opening, rubbing two fingers between the wet lips and covering them with his lube. 

“This isn’t going to hurt right.” Levi asked as he looked down with a worried expression, but soon he was tossing his head back and moaning as he felt the commander’s thumb rub his clit. 

Erwin chuckled before replying. “It might.. we can always stop if you change your mind.” He kept his thumb on the red bud, rubbing it in circular motions as he slowly pushes in a finger. 

“What.. ah- the fuck- that feels weird-“ Levi pants, not used to having anything go in his body. 

His comment made Erwin rub his clit faster, a louder moan escaping from his lips. He began to thrust his finger in and out of the tight space. Eventually slipping in another.  
“How are you feeling Levi?” 

The captain was a shaking mess, his toes curled and head strained back. Panting loudly and biting his lip in an attempt to hold back his moans.  
“Shut up.” Was all he managed to say as Erwin thrusted his large fingers in and out. 

The commander just smiled softly before he moved his fingers in deeper. He experimentally curled them up, hoping to find some sweet spot along those slick, warm walls. 

“Ah!” Levi’s eyes widened with shock as he felt a new wave of pleasure. That was the only response Erwin needed- he began moving his fingers in and out faster. Curling them and rubbing against that spot as he did so. The room was filled with loud squelching noises from the amount of slick pouring out of the captain. 

“Erwin!! Fuck-“ He spread his legs apart more, his panting becoming faster and moans more frequent. His walls squeezed his fingers with each thrust, and Erwin was torn between letting Levi come now or pulling out his fingers and replacing them with his dick. 

“Stop-“ Levi breathed out of slight fear of the overwhelming sensation. The command was loud enough for Erwin to hear, and he stopped all together. 

“Sor-“

“I want your dick. If you keep this up I’m going to cum before getting to the best part.” He panted, drool dripping from the corner of his mouth as he looked up at Erwin. 

“I see.” He laughed a little as he pulled his fingers out. He pulled his shirt off over his head, tossing it somewhere before pulling down his pants and boxers.  
He groans in relief as his hard dick was freed. It sprung out with arousal, standing tall as he used his wet fingers to coat it with lube. 

“Fuck you’re huge- what are you some animal..” Levi’s face turned red as he looked down at it. His dick was easily around ten inches. 

“Think you can handle it?” He teased, glaring down at a bashful Levi as he finished covering his member with slick. 

“Of course I can. Hurry up.” He urged him, watching him move closer. 

Erwin held his dick and positioned it, sliding the tip up and down those plump folds.  
“Tell me if it hurts.” Which it probably will, but he continued regardless. He pushed the head in and slid in further. Stretching Levi to his limits.

“Urghn..” The smaller clenched his teeth, his body tensing at the sudden intrusion, making it harder for both of them. 

He then suddenly stopped halfway in.  
“Relax..” Erwin leaned forward, giving him a gentle kiss on the lips. Levi took a deep breath, and he did in fact relax and loosen up. Making it easier for Erwin to keep going. 

Once he was fully sheathed, he stayed still. Scanning Levi’s face for any sign of pain. 

“It hurts a little but nothing I can’t handle.” He looks up at the blonde, blushing. “It feels good..” After a few seconds of stillness, he rolled his hips up. Silently giving him permission to start moving. 

The two went back to kissing as Erwin began thrusting in and out of the tight space. Feeling his walls squeeze his dick and give him the friction he needed to get closer and closer. He groaned with pleasure as he slid in and out, deepening the kiss as he leaned on his arm.  
Levi wraps his arms and legs around him, moving his hips up with each thrust in. His body flinching each time Erwin hit something deep inside of him. 

“..Levi..” He kissed the side of his face, whispering slightly as he picked up the pace. “I love you.” 

The words alone may have made him cum right there on the spot. Levi’s gave turned red, but he was mostly just overwhelmed with joy. What he thought had been tears of pleasure, could have been tears of joy running down his cheeks as he continued to feel him pound into him. 

“I.. fuck..” Levi was getting close, panting heavily and sweating. His body bouncing up and down the bed with each thrust. Making the poor bed creak and bang against the wall repeatedly.

“Feel good?” Erwin had to make sure, because he for one didn’t know how much longer he could keep up the current pace. He wanted to go faster and harder, but also didn’t want to break Levi right before an important mission. 

“Y..yeah.. more..” He moaned, and that was all the permission he needed. 

He sat up a bit, putting his hand behind Levi’s knee and hooking it over his shoulder. Stretching open his pussy more and sliding in deeper.  
“I can’t hold back anymore Levi..” He warned before sliding out till just the tip was in, and then slamming back in in one swift motion. Hitting his cervix as he did so. 

“FUCK!” Levi screamed in pleasure, throwing his head back again. That was when the deadly pace began. Erwin started fucking him hard and fast. The slapping noises became constant. Levi’s mouth hung open gasping for air as his eyes teared up further. 

Erwin was sweating heavily, panting as he looked down at the mess of a captain. His expression was too lewd, never had he thought he’d get to see Levi’s ahegao. The poor soldier was crying and shaking, drooling and panting like he was in heat. 

His head lolled to the side and his whole body was trembling. His pussy squelching loudly from the wetness and getting slightly bruised.  
He was gasping for air, twitching as he felt a strong pulse of electricity shoot through him. It was filled with pleasure and he was unable to control his voice. He cried out loudly, arching his back as he began to cum. 

Erwin could feel it. Levi’s insides suddenly tightening and pulsing around his dick. “Levi..” He mumbled, about to ask if he should pull out. The captain could see the worried look on Erwin’s face, and knew what he was going to ask.

“B..birth control… ngnn..” Levi could barely make out the word as he trembled and came.

That’s all Erwin needed to hear before he groaned loudly and curled over him as he thrust in deep, cumming hard.  
Levi kept squirting onto both of their bodies, his walls milking all the cum out of his dick. He could feel it- feel Erwin’s hot sticky cum shoot out inside of him load after load. 

“Fuck..” Erwin grumbled, panting heavily. His legs were shaking as he kept cumming. Filling up Levi with each passing second. Drops of sweat dripping down his face as he tried to keep most of his weight balanced on one arm. 

Levi was the first to finish, closing his eyes and instantly relaxing the moment the intense feelings washed over. He remained still, letting Erwin finish releasing inside of him. 

When he was done, he pulled out. A stream of cum gushing out of the red swollen pussy like a river. White dropped from between the plump lips, and Erwin couldn’t help but watch and feel proud.

“Don’t look so chuffed.” Levi snapped, closing his legs. 

“Was it that obvious?” Erwin said through heavy panting and laid down next to him, pulling him close into an embrace. “That was the best sex I’ve ever had.” 

“That was the only sex I’ve ever had.” Levi responded coldly, even though he meant it more as a joke. He was never really good at jokes, and somehow his comments always came off like an insult.  
“It was good.” He added, cuddling up against the commander’s muscular frame as he still tried to catch his breath.

Erwin started petting him, kissing his forehead lovingly. “I never asked, but how do you feel about kids? I know the majority of the scouts are here to provide for their families or here with the goal to eventually have a family in a world free of Titans.” He asked as he kept giving him affection. 

“How do I feel? I don’t want any but I’ll tolerate them if I have to. We already have a bunch of kids here in the scouts.” Levi chuckled lightly. 

“Hormonal teenagers, yes. They can be quite a handful, but it’s great to see them mature and grow as soldiers. I’m actually quite impressed at how Armin’s grown to be specific. He was very quiet and shy when he first joined, and then he managed to find out who the female Titan was. He began helping me with battlefield tactics and mapping out plans- he’s a really smart kid.” 

Levi raised a brow. “You’re taking about him as if he’s your son. Are you planning to make him the next commander or something?” 

Erwin was too happy about Levi’s perky mood, and how he was getting more talkative. He tried to hide it as he responded.  
“No. I don’t think he has what it takes to be commander. I’ve just never met a kid as smart as him. And I have a feeling if it weren’t for him- Annie could have eventually taken more lives and escaped with Eren, and all hope may have been lost.” Erwin looked down at Levi- who looked a little upset. 

“Levi..” He moved his hand under his chin and tilted his head up to face him. “You did well too. If I didn’t have you by my side, I wouldn’t have made it this far and more lives would have been lost. Which is why I need you..” He gave him a quick kiss on the lips once again. “I have plans- selfish plans that put many people in danger. But because I have you a lot of those lives are still living today. Without you, I’m sure I’d only have about a quarter of the scouts left by now. Not to mention the amount of people that joined the scouts due to the admiration they have towards you.” He caressed his face, looking at him with nothing but love in his eyes. 

“You’d be surprised how many of them joined to try to get me in bed with them.” Levi sighed. “That was a pain. But Eren saved my ass I guess. When word about him got out, a lot of people had hope and joined because they believed that brat. You believe in him, and so I’m going to believe in him too.” He glares up at him seriously. “This plan.. I trust that it will work out. I just don’t want to end up carrying your corpse on the way back.” Levi frowned.

Erwin responded by pulling the blanket over their naked bodies, cuddling him and warming him with his body heat.  
“Let’s worry about that when the time comes. For now, we both need to get some sleep.” He closed his eyes.

“..Goodnight Erwin.” Levi mumbled quietly as he closed his own eyes and was quite quick to drift off to sleep.

\--------------------

Erwin was the first to wake up from the best sleep he’s ever had in a while. He looked down to his left, seeing Levi curled up under his arm in the blanket fast asleep. It was somewhat satisfying to see him with his defenses completely down, sleeping soundlessly like a cat curled up next to its owner. This only meant that Levi trusted Erwin that much.

Growing up in the underground, it had always been a habit for Levi to sleep against walls or in corners where nothing could creep up behind him. He used to lock the doors and windows when he slept, trusting no one in the barracks apart from Isabel and Farlan. 

And now here he was, defenseless and relaxed. 

He gently pets his head, watching as the captain slowly began to wake up. His eyes fluttered open, and he just smiled.

“..So it wasn’t a dream.” He moves up and gives Erwin a soft kiss on the cheek, being oddly affectionate.

“Good morning to you too Levi.” He smiles back holding him close with his one arm.

Levi is happy for a moment until he realizes the soreness between his legs, as well as the feeling of dried fluids. He cringed and slowly sat up, peeling the blanket away from him and looking down at the mess.

“I’m not going anywhere without having a shower first.” He says as he gets out of bed, standing up and wincing a little. 

Erwin sat up as well, noticing the slight wince. “Sore?”

“How could I not be- you’re huge.” He has a light blush on his face.

The bigger man found himself staring at the figure standing in front of him. It was no longer dark, and the room was bright. He could see all of Levi clearly, and couldn’t help but admire his body. His overall figure was not too curvy, and he was slim but still had muscles appropriate for his size.  
His skin was still quite pale, but very smooth and untouched due to his skill during battles. Erwin couldn’t find a single scar anywhere- maybe it was an Ackerman thing that scars healed perfectly. 

When Levi noticed him staring, he blushed more and turned around. “Stop looking at me like that you fucking pervert.”  
Turning around didn’t exactly help, since now Erwin had the best view of his shoulder blades, toned back, and rather plump ass that looked smooth to the touch. 

“You’re beautiful Levi..” He gets up and walks up from behind him, embracing him and giving him soft kisses along his neck.

“Save the compliments for later. You and I need to have a shower.” He got out of his embrace, being all flustered. “Come on.” He walked into Erwin’s personal bathroom connected to his bedroom and headed straight for the shower. 

Erwin just sighed with a smile. Just Levi being Levi- and he loved every bit of it.  
He walked into the shower as well, and the two cleaned each other in silence. Just enjoying each other’s presence and not even needing to fill the silence with words to show how much they cared for each other. 

When they finished, they both got fully dressed. Levi helped Erwin get dressed, and Erwin helped wrap the bandage around Levi’s chest, making sure it wasn’t too tight before throwing the dress shirt over him. 

“Let’s go have breakfast. We have to leave very soon.” The commander said as he started walking towards the door- but Levi didn’t follow. He looked over his shoulder and saw him just standing there looking down at the floor. His happy attitude was completely gone and replaced by a sense of dread. 

“I still don’t want you to go.” Levi looked away, not feeling hungry at all. 

Erwin turned around and walked back over to him, pulling him into an embrace. “I know.”

There was a moment of silence, where the two just stood there in the middle of the room, finding peace in the closeness. Levi relaxed at the steady sound of his commander’s heartbeat, leaning into him.

“Erwin.. what are we?” The smaller looked up at him. 

“Levi, right now there are more important matters at hand. But I promise you, after I get to that basement and uncover the secrets of our world...We can start something new.” He reassured him, rubbing his back. 

He leaned down and gave the captain one last gentle kiss on the lips, closing his eyes and relishing in the feeling. Levi didn’t want it to end, so he pushed up a little further. Taking his time to memorize each sensation as if he would never feel his lips ever again.

When they parted, Levi opened his mouth to say the most important thing he had always wanted to say. It was embarrassing and showed weakness.. but he had to say it before it was too late. This was his only opportunity for a while.

He wanted to say he loved him.

But his mouth closed quickly, feeling too ashamed to admit such a thing. He decided he would tell him when they came back from the mission. He swore to himself that he would say everything- about how much he loved him, and how much he meant to him. 

“Were you going to say something?” 

“I was going to say we should go eat. I’m hungry.” Levi walked past him and opened the door.

Erwin raised an eyebrow- never had he heard Levi say he was hungry.  
“Then let’s go eat.” He smiled, and the two walked to the cafeteria together.

>>End of Flashback<<

\--------------------

“Levi, right now there are more important matters at hand. But I promise you, after I get to that basement and uncover the secrets of our world...We can start something new.” 

He could only remember those words as he watched the casket lower into the ground in front of him. 

The flashback didn’t make him feel any better, and he continued to feel numb. He couldn’t feel anything when he took the shovel and helped with the burial, and even when it was complete- Levi felt like it went by in a flash. 

Soon enough everyone was leaving, and it was beginning to rain. 

Hange debated on approaching Levi, who just stood there in front of the grave, looking down.  
She stood a few feet behind him, till it was only the two of them.

Levi mumbled to himself as he looked at the grave with tears streaming down his face.  
“How could you say that and then fucking die you bastard..” 

His tears mixed with the rain hitting his face, and he had no idea how much he had cried anymore.


	2. The Return

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> As the new recruits move into the barracks, Eren finds himself getting closer to his captain..

“So my punishment for choosing Armin is getting fined.” Levi said as he walked out of the meeting room with Hange. 

“It’s not that bad.. like I said before, they can’t do much right now. We are all they have.” She gave Levi a pat on the back, continuing to walk down the polished hallway of the estate. 

“Those pigs are going to take all of my earnings.” The shorter cursed under his breath, feeling more at unease than usual. He was still half embarrassed at the fact that Hange could have noticed him shedding tears at the end of the funeral. 

“Don’t worry Levi! I’ll buy you your tea! I’m commander now, hahaha.” She laughs, trying to lighten the mood as they kept walking in their damp black suits.  
“But..” Hange’s expression darkened a little. “Before we go out to get you more tea, there are some things we need to finish.” She said as she walked outside. The rain was gone for now, but it was still quite dark and cloudy. 

“What things.” Levi looked up at her as she stopped in her tracks. 

“First, we need to start the process of preparing the barracks for a lot of new recruits. Once word gets out about all of this, I’m positive that a lot of people will join.” She smiles. “And I heard cleaning helps with grieving.. and you also like cleaning, so you know! It’s probably good for you!” 

The captain rolled his eyes. 

“But that means.. we need to clear out the rooms of the deceased.” The smile on Hange’s face faded. “We lost.. so many this time. With Eren, Mikasa and Armin being kept by the superiors until the court day- we’re going to need all the help we can get.” She crosses her arms. 

“I can do it.” Levi said plainly, knowing that cleaning is the one thing he can do as of now to keep himself physically and mentally busy. 

“Well, that’s only part one of the things we need to do. After that, we need to start coming up with a plan to clear out the Titans within wall Maria and Shiganshina which is going to take some time. I’d say maybe ehh a year at max.”  
“And we are also going to need to figure out how to deal with our friends on the other side of the ocean.” She sounded nervous as she said that, but also curious. 

“Let’s get back to the base then. We need to start.” He says as he grabs her hand and drags her along to the nearest carriage.

“Someone is eager to clean!” She jokes as they got on and headed back to the barracks. 

\--------------------

The captain spent the rest of the day, and the next day cleaning every room in the barracks. He scrubbed down all the bedrooms, changed all the sheets, sorted out people’s belonging’s in boxes and setting them out in the hallway. Once he was done with a few of the rooms he’d take the boxes to one of the meeting rooms where they were sealed and sorted to be collected by their families or loved ones. 

Levi was carfull to make sure every name was correct on each box. The last thing he would want is families to get the wrong boxes. So he wrote the first and last names clear as can be on the boxes of belongings. 

Jean, Connie, Sasha, Hange and Floch all helped out with carrying the boxes- leaving most of the cleaning up to Levi since he insisted. But to be efficient, the other five were each given a certain number of rooms to clean. 

“Levi.” Hange walked over to the smaller, who was just finishing up putting the sheets on one of the dormitory beds. 

“What is it four-eyes.” He sighed, standing up straight. 

“You didn’t eat last night, and you haven’t eaten all day today.” She was worried for her friend. Levi just had been cleaning nonstop without taking any breaks whatsoever. He was usually good at taking care of himself, and after cleaning a specific section he would always sit down and have some tea before moving on to the next. 

“And what’s wrong with that?” He averted his gaze. 

“As much as I like to see you having fun with cleaning- you need to take care of yourself.” Hange leaned on the door frame with her arms crossed. 

“I am taking care of myself. I’ll eat something when I’m done with cleaning this filthy place.” Levi waved her off and grabbed the broom that was resting on the wall beside him. 

“It’s going to take at least another two days to completely finish the cleaning. So far we’ve only just finished up all the bedrooms and bathrooms. We have yet to clean the hallways, cafeteria, meeting rooms, and the storage rooms.” She sighs, looking at Levi with sadness in her eye.  
“You’re worrying the others too Levi. I know they don’t approach you much- but they have always admired you and respected you. You’re still their captain and they need you.”

“Tch.” He puts the broom down. “Fine I’ll go eat something.” 

Hange’s expression softened. She knew Levi had always had a big heart and cared deeply about his comrades. She could always rely on Levi’s kindness for him to do the right thing.  
Nobody would have ever guessed how nice Levi was deep down inside- all it took was to get close to him and observe him to truly see past that angry face. And the reason behind it- 

Levi had kept his expressions hidden since he was little, because he didn’t want his emotions to affect the people around him. He didn’t want people to worry about him- it was the last thing he wanted. 

“Thank you Levi. Come on. I think today we are having some of the meat we were rewarded with and some bread that was baked this morning! Oh- that reminds me you still haven’t met the new chefs that joined the team! They said they wanted to help the scouts in any way they could, and then brought us a ton of fresh fruits and veggies!” Hange excitedly grabbed Levi’s wrist and pulled him along, hurrying her way to the cafeteria. 

\--------------------

>>Flashback<<

Levi looked across the cafeteria- he could practically feel the man’s gaze piercing through him as he sat eating. As soon as he lifted his head up to look at him, the blonde looked back down at his food and pretended like he wasn’t staring at him. 

“Levi! Why aren’t you eating?! This is the best thing we’ve ever had! It’s so good!” Isabel chirped happily, stabbing a piece of meat with her fork and shoving it in her mouth. 

“Our target has been looking at me since I set foot in here. Stupid fucker is analyzing me.” Levi grimaced before looking at his own food. 

“Forget the mission for now, just enjoy this food! Besides..” Farlan lowered his voice. “We can’t be acting suspicious in front of so many people.” He said as he eyed his surroundings. Scout members eating and chatting, sharing their meals and seeming to be having a good time.  
Very few were giving them weird glances, as if they were jealous or disgusted. 

“Tch..” Levi sighs before cutting the meat up. He’s never really had any meat growing up- it was a luxury that could not be spared to people in the undergrounds. Unless you lived on the surface, it was impossible to obtain. 

The three ate everything up rather quickly. Erwin watched Levi from afar, finding it cute how he started off looking at his food with curiosity and ended with finishing the whole plate within seconds. A part of him wanted to continue watching Levi experience new things- how would the teen react to snow? Or how would he react to riding a horse for the first time? 

“Are you going to make it more obvious Erwin?!” Hange laughed as she nudged him. 

“Make what obvious..” Erwin went back to eating his food.

“You’re interested in the new recruits rescued from the undergrounds- and to be specific, Levi. Right?” She continued to nudge him playfully. Hange was very observant and had been with Erwin for a while to know when he was deep in thought or when he took interest in something. Or in this case, someone.

“Yes, I am. I know his intentions, and I have a good feeling about how he would react when I confront him about them. But I’m wondering if perhaps there could be a way to make him want to stay in the survey corps.” Erwin tapped his chin, thinking.

“And why is that? Do you have a crush or something? Because you have a long way to go seeing that he wants to kill you! Haha-“

“Hange, lower your voice.” Erwin warned her, and she did lower her voice.  
“I want him to stay because we could really use his skill. His small frame makes it harder for Titans to catch him or sense him. It also makes him move around faster, and maneuver easily with the gear. Most of it is sheer talent, but his physical attributes are going to be beneficial once he starts getting more in shape.” 

Hange thought for a moment, before nodding in agreement. “He’s also an Ackerman. I didn’t know they even existed anymore- I thought they were all killed off decades ago. But I guess the rumors were true- very few ran away and hid in the undergrounds. And he’s proof of it right there.” 

“And it seems like the rumors about them being strong is true as well. Despite the lack of food, he has an incredible amount of stamina. I have yet to see him even break a sweat, he seems to do everything effortlessly.” The real term Erwin wanted to use was gracefully.

“Having an Ackerman in the scouts does sound beneficial! I wonder if he will let me examine him and take some blood tests.. oh and maybe with his skill we could capture a Titan!” She excitedly squealed.

“You know the commander already denied your request. But if you could, it may be a possibility if Levi could be persuaded to willingly stay in the scouts. And want to save humanity of course.” Erwin smiled lightly.

“And let me guess, you have an idea?”

“I do.”

“Just make sure he doesn’t kill you!”

Levi could see Erwin and Hange talking about something from the corner of his eyes. He couldn’t hear them, but the conversation seemed… lively. He didn’t know why, but he had a strong feeling that they were talking about him. 

\--------------------

There was a knock at the door to Levi and Farlan’s temporary room. 

Levi got out of bed with a sigh, having been sitting there for a while polishing his dagger. He tucked the handkerchief in his pocket and the dagger in his boot before approaching the door. 

Isabel and Farlan were out on training grounds, still taking lessons on how to properly kill Titans. Leaving Levi alone with whoever may be behind his door. 

He swung it open, not surprised to see Erwin standing there with a fancy tin box in his hand. 

“What do you want.” The teen growled.

“Levi- I know we had a rough start, but I wanted to give you a welcoming gift.” Erwin smiled in a gentle way before holding out the box. 

The shorter eyed it suspiciously, hesitant on taking it. He was smart enough to know that if this man wanted Levi dead he wouldn’t have gone through all that trouble to bring him up. So he had no worries that there would be some bomb or trap in the box.  
Levi took it and examined the box- it was fancy and had some flowery designs on it. He read the letters on the box and was quick to notice that this was tea. 

“It’s one of my personal favorites. A little tricky to get a hold of but worth the effort.” The tea Erwin had given him was one of the more expensive brands, the same tea that the royals drink daily most likely. 

“Don’t expect me to give you a present.” Levi huffed before coldly turning around and closing the door behind him. Something about that man made him agitated- but at the same time he feared getting close to him, because he knew he was going to kill him. 

He opened the box and sniffed the contents- the soft scent made him relax in an instant. Never had he smelled something so pleasant and soothing. Not a lot of things could make Levi relax, but this...  
He couldn’t even smell a trace of poison, which is a skill he had to pick up from the undergrounds. And like he thought earlier- Erwin had no reason to want him dead. 

So he decided to give the tea a try. 

>>End of Flashback<<

\--------------------

The same exact tea was waiting for him on the table as he sat down. It was still nice and warm, the scent never failed to relax him to an extent. 

“I figured you might want some tea first.. I’m not as good as Eren but I tried.” Jean said nervously, since he lost to a game of Rock Paper Scissors and was chosen to be the one to attempt to make Levi some good tea. 

It was true that nobody could be as good at preparing tea as Eren. The poor boy was always the one that had to bring the captain tea. And there were many trial and errors, the first few cups of tea were horrible. But overtime, Eren began to learn until eventually he was able to make the perfect tea for him. 

He picked up the cup like he always does before bringing it to his lips and taking a sip. 

After a moment of silence, Levi finally spoke.  
“Not bad for the first cup.” It was as close as he could get to a compliment. And Jean sighed of relief.

“I’m glad you like it captain! I heard that that was your favorite kind so.. I tried.” Jean nervously laughed, scratching the back of his head. 

“Who told you that?” Levi asked, looking up from his tea. 

“Eren did a good few months ago.” He remembered the day when he walked into the kitchen, seeing a very happy Eren making tea. He had asked him why he was so happy, and Eren had responded with ‘I figured out the captains favorite tea!’ 

“Poor brat’s probably eating pig shit in his cell.” Levi mumbled out of slight concern. He eyed the chefs behind the counter, finishing up on the food. 

“Speaking of eating!!” Sasha stands up. “Let’s go get our food!!” She hurried over to the counter and picks up a tray excitedly. Everyone else followed after that, except Hange. 

She got up from her seat a little later, walking over to Levi and putting a hand on his shoulder.  
“Come on, you need to eat!” She smiled brightly as Levi got up, both of them walking over to the counter to get their trays of food. 

\--------------------

Levi had been saving the best-or worst- for last. Today was the last day to complete the rest of the cleaning. Eren, Mikasa and Armin were back and helping with preparing the training grounds. The award ceremony had gone smoothly, but everybody couldn’t help but notice something was off with Eren.  
Unfortunately they had no time to be assessing the Titan shifter. The new cadets will begin the process of moving into the barracks tomorrow. The base is going to get lively again, and while Hange was busy discussing plans with the superiors, Levi was either being her guard dog or cleaning with his squad. 

The final room Levi had saved was none other than Erwin’s office. Hange had allowed Levi’s requested to keep Erwin’s bedroom untouched for now, since she didn’t exactly feel like changing her bedroom either. But the commander’s office was something that needed to be cleaned out so that Hange could get to work on being commander. 

He took a deep breath before barging in the room with some cleaning equipment, setting it down before closing the office door behind him. The whole place reeked of Erwin’s scent, which was not a bad thing if the man hadn’t died-which made it more painful for the captain. 

Levi could still smell the fresh, clean and comforting scent of Erwin mixed with the cologne he used on a daily basis. He had been around that scent for years and years, so just knowing that it was fading away made him feel a form of distress. The tea of course was one of the scents that could calm Levi down, but it couldn’t even begin to compare to the presence of Erwin. All that man had to do was stand next to him for Levi to remain calm.

He shook his head, managing to set aside his emotions and resort back into his numb state. He robotically started cleaning the place first. Clearing the coffee table that had been scattered with useless documents and even had some dust settling in already. 

The captain cleaned the table, the couches, the floor, the dust on the bookshelves, the windows, and anything he could to avoid the office desk. But the time had come to clear that desk and go through its contents to sort them out.

He pulled down the cloth he had around his neck which covered half his face- stopping him from inhaling dust. He looked down at the desk and began stacking all the papers and setting them aside before wiping it down.

Thankfully most of the papers he found were of more old documents and reports to the superiors. He started going through the drawers, similar papers and reports stacked up all neatly stored away.  
Levi then came to the last drawer which had a secret compartment that he knew of- similar to what Dr.Yeager’s desk had. He guessed there may be some important contracts or maybe a stack of emergency cash. 

He lifted the fake bottom of the drawer, putting it down next to him. He peeked in, and then found an unopened and sealed envelope just resting there on its own. On the back of the envelope, it said ‘Levi’ in what clearly was Erwin’s handwriting.  
“If that bastard left me some depressing ass poem..” He mumbled to himself as he picked it up, scared to find out what emotions he would be facing if he opened and read it. So instead of reading it, he shoved it in his pocket and resumed the cleaning. 

Erwin kept most of his personal belongings in his bedroom, while keeping any important work-related things in his office. There was surprisingly not much apart from papers and books, records of the deceased and then this odd letter. But still, putting away the old ink pens Erwin used to use, the wax seal set, the candles, and one of his spare cloaks resting on the coat hanger was tough for Levi. Any trace of Erwin in this office was to be sealed into nothing but a single box.

And sent where exactly? Erwin didn’t have any family left, so who was going to take his belongings? Was it going to be tossed in the trash or forgotten in some storage unit?

Levi picked up the box, carrying it out and going straight back to his room. He would keep it there until he received direct orders from Hange to put it somewhere. Maybe he could keep it in Erwin’s room.. but that was another battlefield of emotions Levi was not ready to step into yet.

He suddenly bumped into something- or someone, taking a small step back. The impact wasn’t that strong, and Levi mostly blamed himself since he had been looking down at the box instead of paying attention to where he was going. 

“Captain- sorry, I didn’t see you there.” Eren had been looking straight ahead as he turned the corner of the hallway, feeling bad for bumping into him.

“It’s fine.” Levi sighed, looking up at him. The teen had bags under his eyes and looked downright depressed.  
“You look like shit.” He commented, surprised at Eren’s lack of response to.. well, everything.

“That’s what happens when you live in a shitty world, captain.” Eren responded coldly.

“Took you a while to figure it out.” He readjusted his hold on the box. “Go back to cleaning.” Levi said plainly before walking past him and heading back to his room.

Eren noticed the contents of the box- Erwin’s belongings. Levi also came from the direction of his office, meaning he probably just finished cleaning it out. But judging by the turn he took down the hallway, he was heading back to his own room.  
The teen felt sadness and guilt, somehow more intense than before. Because of him, he still had both of his friends by his side and Levi had to give up the one person that had meant the most to him. To Eren it was clear- Levi always looked at Erwin in a different way. He always trusted him blindly and stuck right by his side till the end. He didn’t know the full story, but from what he heard Erwin had brought him up to the surface from the undergrounds and offered him a place in the scouts. 

He didn’t understand why Levi had chosen Armin, since he was positive till the very end that he was going to inject the serum in Erwin. And the only thing he could think of that could have possibly changed Levi’s mind were his own words. Sure Mikasa was the one other person that put up a fight, but she didn’t say much and chose to straight up attack Levi.

Eren had a feeling that deep down Levi regretted it, and that all the hate he was getting from the people around him were tearing him down inside.

\--------------------

The next few days were both a curse and a blessing. A lot of new recruits came flooding in and the barracks was once again a lively place. Armin spent a lot of time with Hange trying to come up with an efficient plan to clear out all the Titans in wall Maria. Levi focused on training some of the new recruits, which had also helped keep his mind off of things. The only issue was that Levi could hear all the mumbles and whispers, all the dirty glares and the way people had gone from respecting him to doubting him.

And it was all because he chose Armin.

People still feared him by all means, and there were still a few that respected him fully. Nobody really said anything or confronted him, but he could tell the majority of recruits here were avoiding talking to him or making eye contact to him. 

But to him it mattered not. So long as the newbies came to their training and were getting the hang of things, Levi could care less. 

In the meantime, Eren helped with expanding the base. Even using his Titan form to help construct the extensions and tear down some of the trees. He was a good tool for getting a lot of heavy weight supplies from one place to another. And of course, Mikasa stayed right by his side and helped. She may not be a Titan, but she was good at lifting heavy things and keeping an eye on Eren. 

Jean, Connie and Sasha were almost like tutors or mentors to the newbies, helping when they could and then sharpening their own skills when they had the time. 

It was a few weeks in when things started to really settle, and everyone was in the flow of their schedules and doing well. At least that was the case for everyone except Levi.

He couldn’t stop thinking about that letter he had found, which he still had not opened to this day. He felt like he should as soon as possible, but whenever he tried he found himself saying that he would do it later. But he had no choice but to open it once he told Hange about it. 

“Levi! It could be something important- if you don’t open it then I will!” Hange had said to him the moment he mentioned it. So here he was, in the middle of the night in his room with the envelope in his hand. He sat on the bed, and finally opened it. He pulled out the first piece of paper, reading it in his mind.

‘Dear Levi

If you’re seeing this, then I most likely didn’t make it back, and I’m sorry. I had been meaning to come back with you, but the battlegrounds are unpredictable and sacrifices had to be made. However, I knew you would make it back safely with or without the information from the basement. 

My only regret is never telling you how much you have meant to me. I can only hope that you’re the one reading this. You are the only person who knows about the false drawer to my desk, and I’m sure you will be the one to clean out my office.  
I don’t have a lot of time to write this, so I’ll say this now. Thank you for being a part of my life Levi. You’ve always been there for me and fought by my side, and I would have never imagined what had been in store for me when I found you in the undergrounds. I’m glad that I did, and I’m glad I got to spend my time with you ever since. 

I never wanted to start a romantic relationship with anyone because we both know being a soldier comes with a huge risk. I didn’t want anyone to hold me close because I knew I was going to die young, but it seems like I was already too late. I was more motivated to survive every battle ever since you joined, and once this was all over, I had hoped to maybe settle down somewhere outside the walls with you. I even have some money set aside for the occasion, which I am handing over to you. The signed documents should be in this envelope along with this letter. 

Thank you for everything Levi. Even if I’m not physically there with you, I can die happy knowing that I had a good life and live on through your memories. It didn’t take me long to come to terms with my feelings- I love you Levi, and I want you to live long and happy.  
Once we are free, venture away from the battlefield, settle down, find someone to love, maybe even have kids if you want to. I’ll be with you always, and rest in peace knowing that you are doing well. Be strong Levi, that is my final order. 

Erwin’ 

Levi put the paper down on the bed, peeking in the envelope and seeing the folded documents.  
The world around him started to blur, and he felt coldness drip down his cheeks. Tears started dropping on the paper as his chest began to hurt. Once he realized, he quickly scooped everything up and shoved them in his bedside drawer. 

He wipes his tears before leaving his bedroom. He felt sick to his stomach- sick to the fact that Erwin was gone and had the audacity to say all those things when it was too late.  
His heart just didn’t want to accept that he was gone even though his mind knew he’s nothing but a corpse in a graveyard now. 

He knew Erwin was horrible at communicating his feelings, but he didn’t think it was this bad. The night before they left- that had been the start something. And it was going to be something if Erwin had made it back alive. Maybe they could have been together, and maybe they could have been happy despite the ongoing war.  
But to say all those things not to his face but through a piece of paper that almost felt like a suicide note was giving the captain mixed emotions.

But he mostly felt sadness.  
He got a small taste of what could have been before it was completely ripped away. 

By the time he got to the med bay, it was too late and everything was locked up for the night. He felt nausea and just knew he wouldn’t be able to sleep tonight. He desperately needed a sleeping pill since he didn’t know if tea would be strong enough. 

“Captain, are you alright?” Eren spoke in a soft tone, watching the shaken-up captain before him just standing in front of the door to the med bay. 

Levi glanced over at him. “Needed a sleeping pill but seems like I’m too late.” He sighs. “What are you doing up at this hour?” 

Maybe a regular human wouldn’t have been able to see well in the dark, but Eren could see. The captain had red puffy eyes and tear stains on his face. He could overall just sense distress emitting from him, which made him tense.  
“I came here for a sleeping pill too. I’ve been having trouble sleeping because of these weird dreams..” Just thinking about it made Eren’s head spin. 

Levi just sighs, thinking for a bit before gesturing for Eren to follow.  
“There’s another thing we could try.” He said before walking down the hallway. Eren followed, remaining quiet. 

They continued their walk until they made it to the kitchen.  
“Wait here.” Levi said as he watched Eren take a seat at one of the tables. The Titan shifter observed his captain, noting how graceful he was when he was making tea- 

Levi was making him tea? Eren almost couldn’t believe it- when did the roles reverse?  
He kept watching with his eyes wider than usual, the captain’s graceful slender hands working on making two cups of tea perfectly. He didn’t let a single drop stain the counter and seemed to trust in his own skill to not burn himself. 

While the captain did that, Eren took the time to light the candle that had been placed in the center of the table to light up the place a bit. How Levi could see in the dark, he could only assume it’s an Ackerman thing.  
He was able to find a box of matches resting on one of the side tables, and quickly lit up the candle before sitting back down.

Levi picked up the two little plates with full teacups resting on top of them. He walks back over to where Eren sat, placing one in front of him before taking a seat across from him. He put his own tea down in the table, waiting a few seconds for it to cool down. 

“Thank you captain.” 

“Just don’t turn into a fucking Titan this time.” 

Eren smiled a little, picking up the cup and taking a sip.  
Levi did the same, and the two sat there in an awkward silence for a while until Eren finally couldn’t take it anymore. 

“I’m sorry about Erwin.” The teen frowns, looking down at the still warm cup. “I shouldn’t have cornered you like that.”

As much as Levi wanted to yell at him, he just refrained. “Stop apologizing Eren, it wasn’t your fault- it was your shit head brother.” Levi took another sip of his tea, averting his gaze.

Eren didn’t know what else to say. There was still this awkward tension in the air, and he wished he could do something to break it.

“You look like you’re holding in a shit- you know you can take that back to your room right? I’m sure Mikasa is going to come looking for you any minute anyway.”

“What?”

“I’m surprised you don’t know. She goes to your room around this time to check that you’re sleeping. I told her to stop because that’s just creepy- and she really isn’t allowed to be lurking around the hallways of the guys dormitories at night. But you know how she doesn’t listen.”

“Urgh of course she would do that..” Eren dragged a hand down his face, but soon enough another question came across his mind. How did Levi know? The teen wanted to think that maybe it’s because Levi was also checking in on him as well… but he doubted it. 

“Yeah, so why don’t you stop hiding there and come and get your Titan boy.” Levi raised his voice, looking at the entrance of the cafeteria. Mikasa had been standing in the hallway, listening to the last bit of their conversation. She walked in, noting the single candle lit in-between Levi and Eren. They were both having tea, at night, together… there was nothing about this that didn’t seem like a date.

“Eren, you should be sleeping.” Mikasa said sternly, ignoring the other Ackerman. 

“I’m not a kid anymore, when will you stop treating me like one?” Eren grumbled before bringing the tea to his lips and chugging the rest down.

“When you stop acting like one. Come on.” She gestured for him to follow, and so Eren got up with a very long sigh. He looks over at Levi with a frown.

“Sorry about her-“

“I thought I told you to stop apologizing.” Levi snapped back.  
“…Right. Goodnight captain.” He said as he gave him a nod. Eren left the cafeteria with Mikasa, clearly agitated.

“What’s your deal Mikasa? I was literally just having tea and talking-“ 

“It’s late.” She said plainly, continuing to walk down the hallway.

“Oh come on.. I know you’ve never liked Levi but you have to stop. He’s not a bad guy- you can’t just hold a grudge forever.” Eren growled, walking alongside her.

“…” Mikasa stays silent.

“After everything he’s done for us, you’re still going to be an ass.” Eren stops in his tracks.

“You don’t need to be having tea with him in the middle of the night. You need to be asleep.” 

“And you don’t get to decide that.” Eren growled.

“Why would you even want to have tea with him.” She made fists.

“With all the shit going on, it was just nice to have someone to talk to.”

“You can talk to me, or Armin..”

“I wanted to talk to someone who would understand me. Me and Levi are on the same page, and everything he does and says is starting to make sense to me.” Eren looks down, his eyes filled with sadness and rage. “He’s just.. human too..” 

Mikasa sighs, and that was it for Eren.

“I don’t have to listen to you. I’m going back.” Eren turned around and started walking back. He hated himself for so easily listening to Mikasa earlier. It had almost become a habit- it was much easier to just listen to her than to not. Armin had always said her intentions are good and are usually to keep Eren safe- but this was crossing that line. Nothing about his captain was dangerous.

But by the time he made it back, the room was dark and empty.

\--------------------

The next few days remained uneventful, and life at the barracks continued. Eren hadn’t talked to Levi since the night when they had tea together, since both of them were just too busy. 

Thankfully they had finally been given a day off, and Levi knew exactly what he was going to do on his free day. 

Levi put on his cloak, put his hood up before setting foot on one of the carriages heading to the Stohess District. He sat on his own in the carriage quietly, crossing his legs and patiently waiting for the carriage to arrive at their destination.  
He looked out the window with a blank expression, just staring off into the view that he passed. It looked like it was going to rain all over again judging from the dark grey clouds above. It was almost as if the weather just knew his moods.

Once he arrives at Stohess, he steps out the carriage and walks down the stone polished sidewalk. Stohess was one of the richest towns within the inner walls, lots of venders with high quality things and nobles walked around in suits and fancy dresses. Levi liked coming here to get tea or teacups if he ever needed any, but today was different.

He walked along until he came to the town center with all the shops and stalls lined outside perfectly. He headed to the stall he had his eyes set on, approaching with caution since he didn’t want anyone- especially the military police lurking around- to identify him. Apparently there were many in the police that had been greatly offended with Levi’s choice, but he didn’t really care for them.

He looked around at all the flowers set around the stall, as well as the ones on the stall. There was an old lady behind, who simply smiled at him as he looked at all of the flowers and plants in general. Levi was having a hard time deciding, since they all looked pretty and smelled wonderful. 

“What’s the occasion sir? Perhaps I can help.” The old lady said as she looked up at him, and thankfully didn’t recognize him. 

“It’s for.. a loved one.” He mumbled a little, since it was technically.

“I see.. Well the roses have been quite popular these days! I have pink, red and blue. Does your loved one like warm colors, or cool colors?” She gestured to the batches of roses.

“I’ll take the blue ones.” Levi had said rather quickly. The deep blue reminded him of Erwin’s eyes, and the daring personality that lurked within them. 

“Wonderful choice!” She picked up the bouquet and handed it to Levi. The smell was somewhat nostalgic and reminded him of that one time Erwin had given him a bunch of red roses after saying it will make his room smell more pleasant. It was a very smooth move for a very clever man.

Levi reached in his purse and gave the lady a little more than what the bouquet was worth. “Keep the change. Thank you.” 

The lady seemed happy as she waved. The captain then set off to the original location he had been planning on going to. Walking further and further from the town center. There started to be less people around him, and it over all got quieter.

He eventually reached the gravesite, finally pulling his hood down as he walked in out of respect. He knew exactly where to go to, since Erwin had one of the greatest gravestones in his own little area.  
Once he got there, he could see that most of the flowers there were dying off. There were a few fresh ones, maybe from people who came to visit yesterday or earlier today.

“I brought you flowers you suicidal bastard.” Levi knelt down and set the flowers down on the empty space right in the center. His blue flowers stuck out from the rest, since most of them had been white or pink flowers of light colors. 

He remained knelt down, as if being closer to the grave would make Erwin hear him clearly. He knew he was gone, and this was nothing but a slab of stone- but he missed talking to him.

“I read your letter.” He eventually sat down, not caring for the dirty ground for once. “You said some pretty touching shit in there. Why did you have to tell me after you died?” He frowned, just looking at the grave with saddened eyes.

“The morning of our departure, after our night together.. I wanted to tell you something. But my dumb ass chickened out and decided to wait till after we came home together.” He sighs. “I thought I told you that I didn’t want to come home with your corpse Erwin..”

He stayed quiet for a few seconds, before finally getting together the courage to say what he wanted to say.

“I love you Erwin.” Saying it out loud only made it more painful, and he couldn’t help but start sobbing quietly as he remembered all the time they spent together. He looked down at his lap, his eyes feeling like they were burning as more tears kept dripping down his face.  
“I’m sorry I said it too late too.” He sniffed, clenching his fists and trying to pull himself back together. 

He stood back up, trying to stop his tears- but that effort only seemed to make it worse.

“Levi! You were here too?” Hange said from a few feet away as she came running to him with a gentle smile-which quickly disappeared as she approached him. The day of the funeral, she had assumed Levi had cried, but the rain had made it harder for her to tell.

Now it was obvious.

“..Aww Levi.. are you crying?” She frowned and quickly pulled him in for a tight hug.

The captain didn’t push her away, and just continued to sob against her.  
Hange rubbed his back, letting him cry it out. “I know Levi.. I miss him too.” She tightens the hug and doesn’t let him go.

She kept him in the embrace, rubbing his back until the sobbing calmed down. She couldn’t help but notice overtime that the captain’s frame felt… smaller than before. It was hard to tell with the uniform always covering his body, but now Hange could actually feel him in her arms.

“It’s going to be ok Levi.. I just know he’s watching over us..” She smiled, moving her hand to pat his head. 

“Do you despise me Hange?” Levi takes a step back, rubbing his eyes one last time.

“Of course not! Erwin left the decision up to you for a reason.” She sighed. “And while I may have not agreed with your decision, I think Erwin would have agreed.” 

“I don’t know about that. Erwin is the kind of guy who would do anything to get to that basement.. But I took that away from him.” Levi just looked down at the ground.

“So you’re feeling guilty?” Hange’s frown grew.

“I am responsible. And as painful as it is, I…don’t regret it.” 

“You didn’t ask to be put in that situation Levi-“

“But I signed up for it. Erwin said if the time came for a decision to be made on the battlefield- that he was trusting me to make the decision on who to revive.”

“I know. It was just unfortunate that Armin was the other candidate for the revival..” She moves closer to him, putting a hand on his shoulder. “I know how Eren can be.. And there was a high chance that Eren would have hated us for the rest of his life if it had been Erwin. But we both know Eren is a crucial part in having any chance against.. well, everything.” 

“I didn’t do this for Eren-“

“So can you look at me in the eye and tell me that Eren had no impact on your final decision?” Hange asked seriously.  
Levi stayed quiet, knowing he would be lying if he said Eren’s words about Armin had not impacted him. But most of the contribution from Eren had been the heartbreak in the boy’s voice. Levi knew he would be torn if Erwin was taken away from him, and a part of him didn’t want that for Eren. The teen already had a huge burden to hold on his back, taking Armin away would have been similar to taking away a man’s crutch.

“..See.” Hange looked away. “What happened, happened. We can’t change that- but I know for sure that Erwin would want us to remain strong. Can you do that with me Levi?”

That reminded the captain of what he read in the letter Erwin had wrote- his last order, was to be strong. So he nodded, walking past Hange. “I have one more stop to make.” 

The commander followed the shorter man, all the way to the commoners gravesites on the other side of the place. She watched as Levi pulled out a single blue rose from his jacket and placed it on a very empty grave. She stopped to stand beside Levi in front of it- Kenny Ackerman.

On his way to the graveyard, Levi had picked one of the blue roses from the batch and kept it hidden in his jacket under his cloak- This was his first time stopping by Kenny’s grave.

“He specifically told me to not put flowers on his grave when he died.” Levi smiled softly. “I’m sure he’s screaming at me from whatever afterlife there is if there is one.”

“Kenny Ackerman.. Wasn’t he the guy that tried to feed Eren to Historia and killed a bunch of our fellow scouts members?” Hange raised a brow.

“I don’t think I’ve ever told you this- but he is the closest thing to a father I ever had. After my mother passed, I was a brat just waiting to die. But this dumbass came in and looked after me. He kept me alive and raised me so that I would be able to survive on my own in the undergrounds.”  
“He left me at some point to fend for myself- because I had been able to fend for myself. I was no longer some pathetic kid. It’s because of him that I made it out of the undergrounds alive.” 

Hange remembered Levi vaguely mentioning in the past that Kenny had raised him. “His last name is Ackerman-“

“I found out right before he died that he was my uncle. The last blood-related family I had left.” He looked over at Hange. “Before he passed, instead of using that Titan-shifting injection on himself- he gave it to me. I know he’s a jerk that probably deserved death, but in the end I don’t think I actually wanted him to die.”

“Sounds like you had a complicated relationship with him!” She chuckled. 

“Fucker tried to kill me multiple times.” Levi said as they both turned around and started walking towards the exit.

“So Levi..” Hange decided to bring up her concern as the left. “A little off topic- But have you been eating like I told you to?” 

“I eat when I’m hungry, and recently I haven’t been hungry.” Levi didn’t look at her as he spoke.

“Levi!” She let out a long sigh. “When we get back, we’re having you weighed. I can’t have you dying from malnutrition.” 

“As long as the nurse doesn’t poke and prod at me.” 

“She’ll end up poking and prodding if you don’t eat!” Hange worried- but a part of her had already been suspecting this. When Mikasa got back to the barracks, she didn’t look well and had not been eating and lost a lot of weight. Hange had theories this could have something to do with the Ackerman bond, and how Mikasa had not been eating because she had not been able to see or be with Eren.  
She worried for Levi, knowing very well that he was most likely bonded to Erwin. But Erwin is now gone.. She could only hope that his bond reactions weren’t as strong as Mikasa’s. Which has proven to be the case so far- but there was also a chance Levi was just good at hiding everything.

Meanwhile, Levi was busy thinking of something else entirely- this conversation reminded him of the fact that now there was not a single soul who knew his secret. The only people who had known where Isabel, Farlan, Petra and Erwin.  
Isabel and Farlan he had told himself, while Petra accidently found out- and Erwin also found out on his own. 

\--------------------

>>Flashback<<

Levi didn’t know how unlucky he could get- one of his first missions outside the walls with his new squad. They were going back to work on building a supply base in the trees, as well as clearing out that forest in general.

They had been on their way back to where the horses were tied up when it happened. Gunther noticed a body at the bottom of one of the trees.

Their orders were to bring back as many bodies as they could, and assuming the man was dead Levi had gone down to pick him up- and realized he was still breathing.  
Judging from the empty gas tanks, and the area where the man was laying, Levi guessed that the man had crashed at full speed right into the tree due to running out of gas.

There were no signs of him being bit by a Titan.

“Captain?” His squad noticed Levi kneeling beside the man’s body and laying it carefully down on his back.

“He’s still alive but his neck is broken. We need to keep his head straight and secure before we move him.” Levi looked around for something they could use-

“Captain, here.” Eld held out a very firm stick or branch that had been resting on the ground. 

“It will have to do for now.” Levi took it before realizing there was nothing to secure his head and neck onto it.

“The horses have emergency kits sir, if we could carry him back-“ Petra was cut off.

“His heads going to roll around if we do that. We don’t have a lot of time to go back and forth- Titans are already closing in on this area.” Levi looked at the man, thinking.

“Then we should leave him before we all end up dying! He’s pretty much dead anyway!” Oluro said with a huff.

“Doesn’t matter. A life is a life and he still has a chance.” The captain snapped at him, finally having an idea in mind.  
“Everyone go on ahead and back to the horses. I’ll meet you there and catch up later.” 

“But sir! Like you said the Titans are closing in, I can feel their footsteps. We will stay by you and fight the Titan’s off while you help him.” Gunther said as he took out his blades.

“There is one or two Titans in the area at most-“ Eld was looking around like a watchdog. 

“Then I only need one of you to stay and watch my back. Petra, you stay. The rest of you head back. That’s an order.” Levi said sternly, and everyone listened. It was never wise to be out in the battlefield alone, and he had learned that the hard way.

“This will be quick, I doubt you’ll have to fight a titan.” Levi said as he took off his jacket and neck scarf and began unbuttoning his shirt.

Petra remained standing by Levi with her blades out. “I don’t see any yet, but we should still hurr-“  
Her eyes widened as she watched her captain- Levi had taken off the bandages around his chest and started wrapping the man’s neck around the temporary brace.

“We’ll talk later.” Levi said without looking at Petra, practically feeling her gaze on him. 

Petra remained silent as Levi finished up. He buttoned up his shirt, put his neck scarf and jacket back on before throwing the cloak on himself. And thankfully nobody would see because of the cloak- not that he had big breasts to begin with. People probably still wouldn’t be able to tell even if he didn’t wear the bandages. 

He carefully picked up the man and the two headed to where the horses were parked.

\--------------------

The man ended up surviving and was now resting up in the med bay.

Petra made her way to one of the empty meeting rooms where Levi was waiting. He had said he wanted to speak with her once they got back. After getting the horses settled, having a shower and eating dinner, Levi was ready to have a quick talk.

“Captain.. You wanted to see me?” She said as she walked in the room, closing the door behind her.

“So now you know.” He crossed his arms, standing and looking over at her.

Petra knew exactly what Levi had meant.  
“I had no idea.” She was a bit afraid but kept her composure. “I won’t ask why, and I won’t tell anyone sir.” 

Levi let out a long sigh of relief. 

Petra seemed relieved seeing Levi be relieved. She smiled lightly. “You are still our captain, and I’m grateful to be in this squad! It’s almost like I have a second family..”

“I’m glad you feel that way. Now go get some rest, today was a long day.” 

Ever since then, Levi had gotten closer to Petra. And also made sure to always carry an extra roll of bandages with him wherever he goes.

>>End of Flashback<<

\--------------------

Eren was on his way to Hange’s office. For some reason, he had been summoned there and the messenger had mentioned it was urgent. He was only a little nervous as he continued walking down the hallway. He was mostly still depressed from all the weird flashbacks and dreams he had been having, the more he had the worse this world got.

When he arrived, he knocked gently. “It’s Eren.”  
“Come in!” Hange shouted from her seat behind the office desk. 

The teen sat down on the chair set up on the other side of the office desk, sitting across from Hange. 

“Thank you for coming Eren! You’re here because I need to give you a new task- it’s not a huge task so don’t sweat too much about it!” She smiled.

“What is it?” 

“I need you to make sure Levi is eating his breakfast, lunch and dinner! Well- at the very least breakfast and dinner!” Hange stated happily. 

“...What?” Eren tilts his head a bit in confusion, raising a brow.

“He’s been... having a rough time because of Erwin’s death and hasn’t been eating well. The nurse weighed him today and he’s lost about ten pounds since he was last weighed.” She sighed.  
“I would like to be the one to yell at him to eat every day, but I’ve been extremely busy. I don’t know how Erwin could be so calm as commander with all the stuff he had to do!” 

Eren still looks at her unbelievably. “You want me to make sure the captain eats?” 

“Yes! I can’t think of anyone else better for the task then you.” Hange smiles softly, looking at Eren with kind eyes. “Over the years he’s grown fond of you, and let you get closer to him. Levi doesn’t have many friends.. but I think he considers you and me his friends.”  
“Something about you sparked his interest, and he used to talk about you a lot to both me and Erwin. When I pointed it out he used to say he was just reporting to the commander- but I don’t think he needs to report how annoying you are when you snore at night or how good you’ve become at cleaning.” 

Eren felt a faint blush on his face.  
So the captain did used to check up on him at night- maybe he still does. 

“But I’m choosing you mostly because you’re not afraid to speak up. And I have a good feeling that if it’s you, he’d listen. He also doesn’t like worrying his squad members, haha.” Hange scratches the back of her head. 

“I’ll make sure he eats commander.” 

“Good! Well, that’s all I wanted to say. Dinner is going to be ready in the cafeteria soon, I probably will have to grab a tray and head back here to finish today’s work.. urghh.” She groans.  
“Anyway- you should go grab Levi now. He’s probably in his room right about now.” 

Eren stands up. “Will do.” 

\--------------------

“...Hange set you up with this, didn’t she?” Levi leaned on the doorframe with his arms crossed.

“She did. But I also think that the captain should be taking care of himself- I shouldn’t have to do this.” Eren looked at him sternly.

He flinched with annoyance. “Last I checked brats like you shouldn’t be ordering around their superiors.” 

“I’m not ordering you to do anything, I’m just reminding you it’s time for dinner.” Eren couldn’t lie- a small part of him was scared, but ever since he stood up against him on the battlefield, he had gained some confidence. 

“Thanks for the reminder.” Levi stubbornly started closing the door, but Eren put his foot in between the door and the frame right before it closed. 

“Captain, I won’t leave till you come with me.” 

“Go take a shit because you’re full of it Eren.” Levi tried slamming the door on his foot, but it only made Eren shove open the door. Levi stumbled back, now pissed.

“Captain please come with me.” Eren kept his stance, looking at him with determined eyes. 

Levi knew better than anyone that Eren was a monster and wouldn’t give up so easily. Tired from the day, he glares at him for a while until he simply sighed. “You’re in the way.” 

“Oh.. right.” Eren stepped aside, watching Levi leave his room and head to the cafeteria. He followed along quietly, only now noticing how his captain’s face seemed less full- he began to wonder if there were ways he could cheer him up. 

As they arrived, Levi just went to the table in the corner and sat down instead of going to the front to grab a tray. 

“Captain-“

“You told me to come to dinner and I did. Take it or leave it.” Levi sat with his legs crossed.

“....”  
Now Eren was getting a bit pissed. He went to the front and grabbed a tray, making sure there were lots of food on it before bringing it to Levi’s table and slamming it down in front of him.  
“Please eat captain.” 

Levi glanced down at the food, and now that he could see and smell it- he actually started to feel hungry. He took the fork, stabbed one of the carrots and put it in his mouth. 

“Thank you.” Eren left to go get his tray, and subconsciously walked to the usual table he sits at with Armin, Mikasa, Connie, Sasha and Jean. 

“Damn now he’s really making you his servant huh?” Jean chuckled as Eren sat down. 

“He’s abusing his power.” Mikasa added.

“Commander Hange told me to make sure he eats.” Eren started digging in on his own food. 

“Why? Are you his papa or somethin? Hahaha.” Connie laughed. 

Eren wasn’t paying too much attention to the conversation around him. He just watched Levi from afar, only now noticing how small and sad he looked.  
He sat there alone, barely eating his food and sometimes poking it with his fork. Usually Eren saw Levi sitting with Hange or his previous squad members- sometimes even Erwin on rare occasions. But now he sat there alone. 

“You see it too, don’t you?” Armin looked at Eren, noticing how he had been looking at the captain. 

“Seeing what?” Eren fixed his gaze on Armin.

“I’ve been noticing how withdrawn the captain had seemed recently. He barely talks to any of us and doesn’t even ask us to clean anymore.” Armin frowns. “..I feel like this is my fault..”

“No it’s not Armin.” Eren got up. “I think he’s being withdrawn because he doesn’t want us to see him be miserable.” He picks up his tray, looking back at where at where Levi had been sitting- only to see him slip away from the entrance and leave the room. 

Before Eren could go after him, Mikasa grabbed his hand. “Eren, leave him be. You need to eat too.” She said with worry, seeing how much work Eren had been doing the past days shifting and carrying heavy things back and forth. 

“He’s going through the pain that I- that we would have gone through, but he spared all of us from it.” He shook his hand out of Mikasa’s. 

Everyone at the table went silent after that, the atmosphere seeming gloomy. 

“I’m going to go find him.” Eren said as he left the room in a hurry.

Thankfully Levi hadn’t made it that far and was walking to his room when he felt a large hand on his shoulder. He stopped walking, knowing exactly who it was. 

“Captain.” Eren unintentionally tightened his grip. 

“I went. I ate. What more do you want?” Levi turns around to face him as he lets go. 

In that moment, Eren had no idea what he had been planning on saying. His mind went blank, so all he could come up with was- “..you should come sit with us next time.” 

Levi sighed and shook his head. He knew the moment he sat down with them everybody would feel awkward and tense. His presence alone made people uncomfortable. He’d rather sit far and watch his squad members laugh and enjoy their meal then sit with them and make them uneasy. 

“I’ll pass. I’m retreating for the night so don’t disturb me.” And with that, he left Eren standing alone in the hallway.


	3. Discoveries

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Levi is unwell and Hange takes him to be checked out.  
> When he gets his test results back, things get more complicated for Levi..

The following days consisted of Hange working with the scouts to build the Executioner From Hell- the titan crushing structure. Which was a huge success, the only issue was it seemed to take a toll on Eren’s body and so the teen had been given the next few days off. 

Levi was getting ready for the day in his room, feeling a little disappointed today since Eren would usually knock on his door around this time and tell him to come to breakfast. But he knew the boy needed rest. 

At this point, Levi was looking forward to him coming every morning and night to remind him of his meals and walk with him to the cafeteria. It was those short walks down the hallway with Eren that made everything worth it.  
He was enjoying the treatment more than he probably should have been, happy that he had someone to spend at least some time with. These days as Hange got busier, he found himself wandering around or training on his own when he wasn’t teaching the new recruits.

So he was grateful that Hange had asked Eren to do this. 

Eren would walk with him for his meal, bring a tray to him, and then the two would eat in their usual locations. Levi still sat alone in the corner, while Eren sat with his group of friends. It was like a routine or habit now. 

“Captain Levi, it’s Eren.” The boy lazily knocked on the door.

It swung open, and Levi had his usual annoyed look on his face. “Shouldn’t you be taking the day off?” He crossed his arms.

“I do have the day off Captain.” Eren smiled. 

“Then why are you here?” 

“Because I like walking to breakfast and dinner with you.” He had the faintest blush on his face as he said that. 

“Well you’re half an hour late moron. I wasn’t going to go today but since you showed up, I’ll get my ass over to the cafeteria. It should still be open.” Levi strode past him, and Eren happily followed. 

He looked over at Levi from head to toe, noticing how much fuller he had gotten. His skin seemed to no longer be sickly pale and instead was glowing.  
Eren had gotten a good pat on the back from Hange yesterday. She had called him to the office and said: “Good job Eren! I heard Levi’s gained his ten pounds back!” And then as a reward, Eren got another extra day off. So he had five full days of freedom to do whatever he wanted. 

“What are you a pervert? Look where you’re going brat.” Levi snapped when he noticed Eren staring at his body up and down as they continued their walk. 

“Right.” Eren quickly fixed his gaze ahead. He got completely lost when looking at Levi’s body, but was mostly just glad he was back to his normal weight. 

It got a little awkward after that small exchange, but Levi finally spoke up. “Eren, how is your body holding up?” He tried to ask as casually as he could. 

“I’m feeling better. No more nosebleeds, I think I’m just physically tired.” 

“That’s good-“ Levi suddenly stopped in his tracks when the smell hit him. He covered his nose and mouth with his hand, cringing. 

Eren was confused and stopped as well. “Is something wrong?” 

“The fuck is with this smell? It smells like pig piss.” He takes a step back, away from the direction of the cafeteria. 

“I think it’s just the breakfast?” Eren lifts his chin up a little and sniffs the air. “It’s probably scrambled eggs and sausage- Sasha was going on about the new supply of meat the scouts were awarded.” 

“I won’t be having breakfast today.” Levi turns around and starts walking back to his room.

Eren follows suit. “Captain! What if- I bring some food to your room?” He suggested, kind of confused as to why Levi is suddenly reacting this way. He could have sworn the man had been eating scrambled eggs and sausage a couple days ago when it was on the menu. Maybe it was a different type of sausage or eggs? 

“Does it look like I want to eat whatever shit is being handed out in the cafeteria?” Levi growled. 

“..I could bring you a bowl of porridge, it’s easy to make. Oh and tea.” Eren was persistent- he needed his morning dose of Levi. Something about seeing the small human eat made him feel proud, because it was something that only Eren could do. Nobody else could have convinced the captain to eat, and Hange gave this task to Eren for that reason. It was without a doubt, Levi had a soft spot for Eren- at least that’s what the boy hoped. 

He waved his hand with a sigh. “Fine, I’ll be in my room.” He walked back and waited for Eren in his room. 

He leaned back in his chair, lounging by the round table waiting for his food to arrive. A part of him began to feel bad for Eren as much as he was enjoying this. He felt the small desire to do something back for him, but he didn’t know what.  
Within a few minutes, Eren was back. He walked into the room and set the tray down in front of the captain. Levi had thought Eren would now leave and go back to the cafeteria to eat his own food- but instead he took a seat across from Levi. 

“Don’t you need to go eat?” He glares at him as he picked up his tea and brought it to his lips, taking a small sip. 

“There is no one in the cafeteria except the chefs at this time, and I don’t feel like eating alone.” And it wasn’t like he could even bring food to his room and eat together either unless he also had porridge.

“You’re not going to be following me all day like a lost puppy Eren. If you want to eat go eat.” He said as he moved on from his tea to the porridge. Taking a spoon full and popping it in his mouth. 

Eren could never get enough of the captain’s tiny mouth. He took such small bites and sips, it was adorable. He had never seen the captain make a mess when eating or chug down a bunch of water- he was always graceful and composed. 

“Maybe, but I enjoy sitting here with you captain.” Eren watched him happily, but it had begun to make Levi feel a little uneasy. 

“And why is that..” 

“Ever since I sealed the walls, we haven’t seen each other as much. I know we’ve all been busy, but that’s why I started to enjoy this job Hange gave me.” It gave him a good excuse to spend time with him. 

“So you’re just a kid who wants to spend more time with his captain.” Levi tilted his head, looking at Eren from a slightly different angle. He noticed the flash of annoyance come and go on Eren’s face. 

“I’m not some kid sir.”

“You look and act like one to me.” Levi said plainly. 

“Is that what you think? That I’m just a kid you’re forced to watch over?” Eren could feel his anger flaring up. 

“You’re a brat that’s been given a shit ton of power. My job as a captain is to make sure you don’t go running around throwing a tantrum.” 

“I’m not a brat, or a kid- does a kid go out and kill Titans? Does a kid willingly go into a war and watch people die?” 

“That’s what it looks like to me Eren.” 

“Then you’re wrong. Mentally I’ve already been a forty year old multiple times, I know shit that no kid would know or want to know.”

“What do you mean by that Eren? Is there something you’re not telling us?” The words peaked Levi’s interest. “Because if that’s the case I suggest you spit it out now before the superiors find out.” 

“Do those guys still think I’m against humanity?!” 

“Calm down Eren. Those pigs are just shitting their pants knowing that you exist- they need all the reassurance and proof they can get to trust you.” 

“It’s like no matter how hard I try- they’ll never believe me!” 

“Because Eren, sometimes you act like a k-“

“A kid! I get it!” He stands up. “If that’s all you’re going to see me as then you might as well ask me to leave your squad. I didn’t do all this shit just for you to be looking down on me like I’m some pain in the ass that you have no choice but to deal with.” 

“Eren-“

“After everything I did- if I’m just some kid to you then I don’t want to hear it.” He raises his voice a little more before stomping out of the room and slamming the door shut behind him. 

Levi just sat there, not really sure what to do. 

\--------------------

Eren never came to his door after that encounter. Even after his break was over, he still kept his distance. The teen avoided him and wouldn’t even look at him anymore. 

Was it really that big of a deal?

Levi was sure that now it was probably considered a big deal. He guessed that Eren’s group of friends probably noticed their friend’s foul mood, and Eren being Eren he most likely told everyone about what happened from his perspective. He would rant, complain, and grumble about it whenever it was brought up. At least that was the captain’s guess.

Not that it really mattered. Recently Levi has found himself feeling nauseous in the mornings and throwing up his dinner. He skipped breakfast now, since he always had an upset stomach around that time. He was even afraid of trying to go eat dinner because he had been just throwing it up the next day first thing in the morning. 

When it first happened, it had made Levi leap out of bed and run to the bathroom. Coughing and gagging over the gross toilet bowl before finally emptying out his stomach.  
He couldn’t remember the last time he had thrown up. This continued for a week, and it was only a matter of time before someone would catch him vomiting in the morning. 

It happened again today. Some days he would be lucky and it would just be nausea and eventually calm down, but some days it would get worse and worse till his stomach flipped.  
He was getting ready, cringing as he finished wrapping a new bandage around his chest. The tight wrapping was not helping with the nausea, and recently began to actually hurt. 

He was beginning to put on his neck scarf when he had felt the familiar feeling. He was going to puke-

The captain swung the door open, running past Hange who looked very concerned. 

“Levi?” She followed him but stopped at the door to the men’s room. She could hear the captain gaging and coughing, and once again, emptying his stomach out. “Is everything ok??” She worried.

Levi was panting heavily, drool dripping down the sides of his mouth as beads of sweat rolled down his face. There was nothing to throw up at this point except water, so he just painfully coughed until the nausea died down.  
He wasn’t able to fully speak for a bit, not realizing the small tears in his eyes from the strain of gagging. 

“Fine.” Levi said through sharp breaths, flushing the toilet and getting up. This was the worst one yet- his head felt like it was going to explode and his chest was heaving like he was having a panic attack.  
He slumped and leaned against the stall, trying to stay on his feet and waiting for it to pass. 

“Ah fuck it, I’m commander!” Hange walks into the men’s room, and when she saw Levi her heart broke. She hurried to his side, putting an arm around him before he would slide down the wall and end up sitting on the bathroom floor. 

“Levi- we need to get you to the med bay!” She tries to move him, but the captain stays put. 

“It’s going to pass, don’t worry four eyes.” He was beginning to calm down, the headache fading little by little. 

“What do you mean it’s going to pass? How long as this been going on? If you’re sick we need to get you checked out- not just for your sake but for the other scouts members as well! We can’t have you spreading an illness if that’s the case.” She tries to get him to move again, and this time it works. 

Hange was right. Levi didn’t want anyone else to get as sick as him if he did have some kind of bug. 

“..Levi, I’ll ask again- how long has this been going on?” She spoke as she helped him walk to the med bay. 

“About a week.. maybe a little over.” He sighed. “It’s only in the mornings. I think it’s just me.” He hobbled along, leaning against Hange and continuing his walk. 

“..You feel skinny again Levi.” She frowned.

“I can’t keep anything down.” He started to put less and less weight onto Hange and eventually began walking on his own. “I’m already feeling better.” 

“..You know Levi- I was coming to check on you today because I heard from one of the chefs that you barely come into the cafeteria anymore.” She said as she guided him into the med bay, settling him down on one of the beds. 

“I don’t know what kind of shitty meat they end up serving, but it’s not been helping my appetite.” Levi sighed. 

The nurse appeared after checking in on one of the other patients resting in the large room. She pulled the curtain behind her as she approached the two.  
“Commander Hange, Captain Levi, what brings you here today?” The middle aged woman sat down on the stool in front of the bed. 

“Levi’s been sick, and so he needs to be checked out.” Hange pats her friend’s shoulder.

“And the symptoms?” She eyed Levi. 

“Vomiting, nausea, and headaches.” He said plainly, knowing there would be no escape. “But I feel fine now.” 

The nurse grabbed a clipboard with a paper already clipped to it. Taking a pen out of her pocket and writing stuff down.  
“I can check your temperature, and suggest we get some blood work done. A urine test too would be ideal just to be safe.”  
“But for now, as a temporary fix, I can prescribe you pills for nausea and headaches.” 

She gestures to the scale. “Do you think you can hop on there real quick?” 

Levi nodded, and got up with Hange’s help. He took his boots off and stood on the scale, standing still as the nurse checked his weight and wrote it down on the paper clipped to the clipboard. 

“I believe we are back at square one weight wise.” She sighed. “You lost thirteen pounds since the last time we weighed you.” 

Levi remained silent as he stepped off and put his boots back on. He sat back down on the bed and could already feel the scolding glare from Hange. He dared not make eye contact and simply looked away. 

“..Well..” Hange sighs. “I’ll be waiting outside.” She pats Levi on the head before leaving. 

The nurse did exactly what she said she would do, checking his temperature and even looking down his throat. Everything seemed fine apart from the fact that his temperature was a little higher than usual. 

“Here you go. There is a bathroom on the other side of the med bay.” She said as she handed him a brown paper bag that had a small container inside. 

Levi sighed with annoyance as he went to go get the job done. The last time he had any tests done to him was shortly after he joined the survey corps- just to make sure he was healthy after being so long in the undergrounds. It was one of Erwin’s orders.  
He came back, sitting down and putting the bag down on the bed beside him. “Never thought I’d be pissing in a cup.” He mumbled, rolling his sleeve up and holding out his arm. “Let’s get this over with.” 

“I know it can be embarrassing, but it’s needed.” She chuckled whilst preparing everything and sanitized the skin above the targeted vein on his arm. And eventually, she started drawing some blood. 

“Its disgusting to think someone wants to see my piss.” Levi grumbled and was looking around- he should be out preparing the training grounds for training the newbies. 

She finished up and began taping cotton where the needle had pricked him. “All done!”  
The nurse turned around to one of the cupboards and pulled out a small pill bottle. She handed it to Levi. “These should help if you ever start to feel nauseous or have a headache. For your body size- try and keep it to one to two tablets every six hours, and only take it when you need to.” 

Levi nodded before eyeing the tubes filled with his blood. “Is that really enough?” He seemed doubtful. 

“Currently, it’s all I can take. You need to start eating more Captain, and hopefully with those pills it will be easier to keep food down.” She reached the drawer on the bedside table and pulled out one of the assorted field provisions wrapped up and ready to go. “This should be light on your stomach and give you some energy. I still recommend you go eat breakfast after this though.” 

The captain took it, opening up the wrapper and taking a bite in the hard, crunchy bar of nutrition. He wasn’t a fan of these but ate it regardless. 

“Thanks.” Once he was done eating, he tossed the wrapping in the small bin next to the bed and stood up. 

“All the test results will be available within a few days, and then you can take a look at the full report.” She smiled. “Please eat healthy and take it easy.” 

And with that, he left the med bay- only to find Hange standing outside leaning against the wall with her arms crossed. She eyed Levi, clearly upset.  
“I thought I told you to eat! I know you’re a bit down but think about it- he wouldn’t want you to starve yourself!” Hange raised her voice a bit. A few scout members standing from afar and debating on whether to go down the hallway they were in. 

“That’s what you think?” Levi crossed his arms. “Listen four-eyes, I’m not starving myself for starters. And this isn’t because I’m sad as shit either- I threw up everything. Even if I ate dinner, I threw it up in the morning. And I feel too nauseous to even look at breakfast.” He growled, wanting to say more but holding back. 

She sighs again. “Ok, I’m sorry for assuming.” Hange frowns, looking down a little. “I’ve just been worried- you seemed to be doing fine a week ago and suddenly you’re.. well, sick. Did you go out anywhere where there was sick people?” 

“I haven’t been out. Look- I’ll keep myself healthy.” Levi hated seeing Hange looking stressed, and he hated worrying her to this extent. “I promise.” 

“Thank you Levi.” She smiles softly at him. “I’m giving you today and tomorrow off, and no- you don’t have a say in this.” She chuckles.

“I’ll take it. I would rather clean and read a book than teach a bunch of sweaty teens and adults who do nothing but give me the same dirty looks I got in the undergrounds.” 

“..I’m sure it will pass. They can’t hold this over you forever.” She gives Levi another pat on the head. “Anyway! I have to get going now- but if you need me, you know where to find me.” 

“The big ass commander’s office. I know.” Hange seemed reassured and left in a hurry. 

Levi was going to keep his promise, and so began to make his way to the cafeteria to eat. He just hoped that there wouldn’t be anything that smelled horrible. 

\--------------------

Eren’s eyes widened a little as he saw the captain finally make an appearance at breakfast. He walked towards the front, grabbed a tray and sat in his usual spot. 

“Well look who’s back.” Jean commented when he noticed Eren staring at the captain.

“Looks like he doesn’t need is errand boy anymore.” Connie chuckled, going back to his food.

“Eren, maybe you should go talk to him. You can’t avoid him forever, and I know what he said upset you but-“ Armin was cut off.

“I know.” Eren doesn’t take his eyes off the captain. “I was upset at him, and yeah maybe I did avoid him for a bit. But I just mostly wanted to see if he’d come and eat on his own- and it seems like he finally has.” He stood up. “I’ll be right back.” 

The group watched as Eren left the table and headed over to the captain.  
But the closer Eren got, the more he began to notice. The captain’s skin was back to being more pale than usual and his face was no longer full.

He had been hoping the captain was just eating at different times or eating elsewhere- but apparently he had been wrong. 

“Seriously..” Eren mumbles as he stands across from the captain by his table. “Are you doing this to get at me captain?!” He raised his voice, glaring at him. 

“Eren, I have no idea what you’re talking about.” He was confused as he looked up at the teen. 

“Do you realize what you’re doing Captain?! Is this because I didn’t come dragging you out of your room for a few days?! It shouldn’t be MY responsibility to make sure you do a basic human behavior called eating!” 

“You think I’m doing this on purpose too.” Levi sighs, pinching the bridge of his nose. 

“Are you TRYING to get me in trouble captain?!”

Levi stands up. “You’re right, it’s not your job to be doing this. But you also shouldn’t run your mouth about shit you don’t know.” 

“Don’t harm yourself just because you can’t accept the fact that Erwin’s-“

Before Eren could say anything else, he earned a hard slap across the face. It shut him up for now.  
If Levi had more strength, he would have done more than a harsh slap. But with the table between them, it was all he could think of to do. 

The cafeteria went silent.

“Don’t yell at your superior.” The captain growled before he turned on his heel and leaves the room, clenching his fists. Sure the first week after Erwin’s death he had a bit of trouble getting himself to eat- it was a bad habit he thought had been long gone.

Growing up in the undergrounds, starving was linked to sadness.  
So when he got sad, his body made his hunger fade away. 

He overcame the bad habit when Eren started coming to his room and walking with him to the cafeteria. It had been a good boost and encouraged him- and he felt his hunger return once again. Even after Eren ‘left’ he was fine by all means.  
He was a little upset, but not enough for his hunger to disappear. He tried to get in food, but it had been difficult these past days.

Back in the cafeteria, all eyes were on Eren as the captain left. All was silent, and then the mumbling started. The mumbling eventually turned into normal conversations and all was back to normal within a few minutes.

“Someone got bitch slapped.” Connie commented as Eren returned to the table, rubbing his cheek.

Sasha was holding Mikasa back, and it was only when Eren got back that she let her go. She was immediately by Eren’s side, looking at his face with rage and shock in her eyes.  
“Are you ok Eren?!” She looked at the red mark, wanting to go after Levi and knock some sense into him- but she held herself back, knowing very well that she couldn’t do that.

“I’m fine Mikasa.” He sighed, looking at Armin as if asking for help.

“What was that all about?” Jean asked, being nosey.

“Whatever it was, I don’t think bringing up Erwin was a good idea Eren.” Armin sighs. “Try to be in his shoes- what if I had died? And then a month or so later Levi tells you to get over it?”

“That’s not what I said Armin!” Eren looks away from him. “I don’t want to talk about it.”

\--------------------

A few days later, Eren was called to Hange’s office. He had a good feeling that he was going to be told off for either what he said to Levi or that he hadn’t been doing his job and making sure he eats. 

He walked into the office as Hange gave him permission to come in. He took a seat in the same spot he had sat last time he was here- the chair on the other side of the commander’s desk across from her.

“Commander, if this is about me bringing up Erwin to Levi during our conflict- then I apologize beforehand. I know I may have gone too far-“ 

“That’s not why I called you here Eren.” She folds her arms on the desk. “I’ve been wondering- why didn’t you report to me about Levi being sick?”

“..What?”

“Hmm…Judging from your response, I’m guessing you haven’t been doing that job I asked you to do recently. But I’ll give you a pass on that. I can see how it may be tiring for you and that Levi will eventually need to start taking responsibility of his own body.” Hange sighs.

“The captain is sick?” Eren’s mind was still stuck on the first thing Hange had said.

“Yes. He’s been sick for quite some time now, although he has been getting better these past few days- it hasn’t fully gone away. We are still waiting on all his test results- and I’m hoping we will be able to figure this out.” 

Eren frowned. “I had no idea.”

“Well as you know, Levi is quite good at hiding a lot of things! Haha.” She laughs nervously. “So the main reason I called you here was to let you know that you are free from the job I asked you to do all those weeks ago! Levi actually came in and personally asked me to excuse you from the job. He also talked some common sense into me- and I’m sorry that I put a huge responsibility onto you. It wasn’t fair of me to just throw that at you when you already have a lot to deal with!” 

Eren couldn’t lie- a small part of him was sad that he no longer had the job. Meaning he had no excuse to go see Levi every morning and night.  
“It honestly wasn’t that hard of a job.” He reassured her, and it seemed to have worked to an extent. 

“Well still! Thank you Eren. Although-“ Her bright smile was gone, replaced by a rather serious look on the commander’s face. “Out of curiosity, what did you say to Levi about Erwin? He never mentioned having a conflict with you.” 

The teen panicked, not wanting to lie to his commander but also not wanting to say the truth. “I.. told him to stop starving himself and just accept that Erwin is gone.” He gulped. 

“I... see.” Hange leaned back in her chair, letting out a long sigh. “What you said- are things Levi should consider if he had been starving himself, but how you said it may have been a problem. Ordering around your superiors never work out well.” 

“I just got worried about him, and somehow it just came out as anger.” His eyes saddened. “My head has been all over the place recently, but thankfully I had Armin to talk to. About the fight- we both came to an agreement that we are taking the captains sacrifice for granted.” 

“Eren-“ Her soft smile returns. “Don’t stress yourself too much about this, ok? I’ll try and keep a better watch on Levi, and eventually I’m sure he’s going to be just fine. The sickness will go away and he’ll be eating and moving around normally very soon..” She said with a thumbs up.  
“In the meantime, try and clear up the things going on in your head. And focus on completing your given tasks for the day.” 

Eren nodded. “Will do.” 

As he left the office, he couldn’t help but feel.. guilt. Levi had been sick, that’s why he wasn’t eating these past days. But then, why didn’t he tell him? He had a feeling it could be that the captain would rather want him to think he’s not eating due to mourning than to know that he’s not eating because there is something physically wrong with his body. Captain Levi- humanity’s strongest- sick? Eren didn’t even know it was possible. He’s only ever seen Levi injured from that one encounter with Annie. 

Not to mention the captain was an Ackerman- his body in general was supposed to be quite strong against illnesses and diseases according to his dad. Mikasa had never caught a cold once in her life, and whenever she did get injured it healed faster than usual. 

Thinking back over everything he had said to the captain, all he felt was embarrassment of his own behavior. He had single handedly proved Levi’s point of him still acting like a kid. 

\--------------------

Levi sighed as he laid in his bed- which he had cleaned earlier for the second time today. The sheets felt nice and soft against his skin, and the scent of lavender was welcoming to him. He had had a long day of training the recruits and was exhausted from still being in the recovery phase of his sick period.  
The pills had been working well, and whenever he started to feel any sign of nausea he would swallow one and the unpleasant sensation would be gone. He was able to eat and keep things down, the only issue now was that he was beginning to feel bloated. 

He could even say he started eating more than before, and always lurked around the cafeteria at the end alongside Sasha to see if there were any leftovers to munch on. 

Levi shifted uncomfortably on the bed, debating on just taking off his bandages around his chest for the night. Usually at night, he would loosen the bandages to get comfortable. And then tighten them again if he needed to leave the room at night for some reason. But these days, it was just getting downright painful as well as uncomfortable.  
Over years and years of wearing it, he had never had this issue. He was used to it and was comfortable in it. He knew how to wrap not too tightly and damage his ribs, and he knew of different methods as well. And yet everything was just uncomfortable. 

There was a knock at his door. What could anyone want at this hour? 

Levi sat up, making sure his bandages weren’t too lose before heading over to the door. 

“It’s Hange.” 

That voice made him relax. He smoothly opened the door. “What is it Hange? Couldn’t this wait till tomorrow?” Levi wasn’t one to get easily sleepy, but he had snagged a sleeping pill from the med bay earlier- and apparently it only took half an hour to kick in. 

“It’s pretty urgent..” she walked past him and into his room and sat herself down on one of the chairs by his round table. 

Levi closes the door, walking over and sitting down across from her. He was quick to notice she was holding a few papers. 

“I was going through the last bit of letters I received today- and saw that your test results came in.” She set the papers down before her. Levi couldn’t read a thing because it was upside down from his perspective.  
The single candle lighting up the room was enough for Levi to notice the tension and distress in his commander’s face. 

“...And?” Levi was getting nervous. 

“Well first things first- your blood tests.. they tested for all sorts of things- you know, since you’re the captain and our biggest chance at winning battles. They can’t miss anything if there was something wrong.” She eyed Levi. 

“....Levi, is there something you’re not telling me?” 

“Spit it out Hange.” Levi tapped his finger on the table impatiently. 

“..Alright. First things first- your blood test results show that you lack Y chromosomes.” There was an awkward moment of silence, before Levi gave in. 

“I was planning on telling you, since you’re the new commander.” He said uneasily, averting his gaze. 

“..So...” Hange was in a bit of a shock.

“Yeah, I don’t have a dick if that’s what you’re asking.” Levi was still averting his gaze. He had been hoping to tell Hange before she found out on her own after becoming commander. He felt stupid that it never once crossed his mind that these tests could have revealed that fact.

“Come to think of it, you’ve never been shirtless.. and- don’t take offence but- I always thought your face and frame were rather feminine than masculine. Haha..”  
“But if I can ask- why? Do you.. not like your current body?” She tilts her head as she asks the question. 

“It’s not that- it’s just something I grew up with since being in the undergrounds. I started it and I can’t seem to end it. Me walking out with tits one day and going into the women’s room is going to make everyone uncomfortable.. and will ruin my reputation.”  
“When I was first brought up to the surface, I considered dropping the act because a part of me wanted to think it was safe up here. But I was young, and fearful. I couldn’t trust anyone and didn’t know enough about the surface, so I went into the scouts as a male and continued my act.”  
“I didn’t see how it mattered because I was planning to kill Erwin and leave the scouts, then start a new fresh life somewhere else. But things didn’t go that way and now I’m stuck in a position that I will have to carry to my grave.” He grumbles, annoyed at his past self. 

“..but what started this? What did you fear so much that caused you to doubt the safety of the surface?” 

“..The part of the underground I grew up in was the worst of the worst. Little girls were constantly kidnapped and sold. It nearly happened to my mother- and apparently having Ackerman blood increases the sale price.” He waves his had carelessly, a bit annoyed.  
“My mother didn’t want that for me, so she gave me a special haircut, and named me Levi. She feared that if people found out about me, I’d be forced into prostitution like how she was.” 

Levi’s eyes saddened. “After she passed, I kept this going. Kenny was also agreeing with me that I should continue this until I could at least get to a safer location. But after seeing my mom raped countless amounts of times I just can’t seem to get myself to do it.” 

“..that’s understandable Levi. I don’t mind you doing this- it’s just.. there might be another issue.” She sweats a little. 

“..What’s the issue.” 

“The reason why you’ve been sick..” 

“And the reason?” 

Hange nervously looks down at the papers. “Your urine test was normal.. apart from one thing. Apparently you are.. pregnant.” 

Levi didn’t know what to say for a second, but then quickly shook his head. “It’s not possible- they probably messed up the test.” 

“Well if that test was wrong, the blood tests back up the results. It says on both test results that you’re pregnant Levi..” She hands the papers to him, and he scans it with slightly trembling hands. 

“..Did you have sex with anyone these past weeks?” She looked at him seriously. 

“I’ve only had sex with one person..” He abruptly stood up from his seat. “There’s no way- I’ve been on birth control.” He set the papers down and went to his closet, where he opened it up and reached on one of the shelves. He grabs the pill bottle hidden in the back before bringing it to the table and slamming it down in front of Hange. 

She picks up the little bottle, holding it up and reading. “This is the usual birth control given to the scouts.. maybe these were faulty..” She turns the bottle to the side, and her eyes widened. 

Levi noticed, and froze. “What-“ 

“Levi, these expired quite a while ago..” She takes the top of the pill bottle off and sniffs the inside, cringing. “Yeah these are definitely expired..” Her frown grew. 

“..That- but I didn’t have my period. I’ve been taking the pills in that bottle for maybe about four or so months now.” 

“I don’t know how exactly birth control works.. but a common thing that happens in the scouts is that stress causes periods to stop. That could have been the case from before you got pregnant.” 

Levi was shaking, trying too hard to hide it. 

“..Levi I.. hate to say this but-“

“I know. I need to leave the scouts..Tch.” He sighs. “I just.. need some time.” Levi walks out of the room.

“Levi-“ Hange was cut off as he closed the door behind him. As much as she wanted to go after him, Levi had said he needed time, and as a friend, all she could do for now is respect that. And hope that he will come back on his own to continue their conversation. 

\--------------------

>>Flashback<<

A young brunette walked out of the commander’s office with tears streaming down her face. She was sobbing as she walked past Levi- who had been on his way to the office.  
He walked in, closing the door behind him a placing a hand on his own hip. He looked at Erwin who sat behind the desk, raising a brow. 

“I see you still lack charm.” 

“I don’t think you’re one to speak Levi.” He chuckled as he got up, picking up some papers. 

“What the hell was that about?” The Ackerman asked curiously, walking closer to his commander. 

“I had to drop her from the scouts because she got pregnant.” He sighed. “The sex life of the soldiers are none of my business, but if there is an occasion that a woman gets pregnant she will obviously need to leave.” 

“She should have been more careful.” Levi could only hope that it had at least been consensual. 

“..Female soldiers have the option of taking birth control- which is provided for free of course.” He eyed Levi. “..that reminds me, are you taking any? If so I’ll have to put in a request for an extra bottle.” 

“..I’ve been taking Isabel’s. I was going through her belongings after coming back from our first mission and she had a few month’s worth of pills. But I’m beginning to run low.” Levi sighs. 

“Well it’s a good thing you told me.” He smiled. 

“Shouldn’t we just give every male scout member a pack of condoms.” He suggested, knowing the effects birth control can have on a person. 

“There are plenty of packs in the med bay, they are easier to obtain and use I suppose- but that’s not something I’m going to lecture the survey corps about. The choice is theirs.” 

“They better make the right choice if they don’t want to end up with kids.” Levi said as he followed Erwin out of the room. 

>>End of Flashback<<

\--------------------

Levi was shaking, kicking down one of the old barrels in the training grounds at night. He didn’t know how else he could let out his frustration- just when he thought things were getting better, Erwin had to leave one more thing behind. Something that would turn his life upside down and change it till the day he died.  
Dealing with his death alone had been the toughest thing he had ever had to face, and now this- he was having the baby of his dead commander, and past lover. 

He fell on his knees in front of the broken barrel, now nothing but planks of snapped wood and a ring of rusty mental. There had been nothing in it, and the wood had been rotting away from how old it was anyway. 

But still, this did not make him feel better. He put his face in his hands and started sobbing- he blamed it on the hormones. It’s just a baby, why would he shed tears because of this?  
But he had every reason to shed tears- he was going to have to leave behind everything he had built here. He was going to have to leave the only family he has, as well as the only purpose he had. 

All he had wanted was to use his talents to stand beside Erwin and save humanity. He was an Ackerman, and a strong one- he needed to fight.  
But now he’s going to get fat and useless, sitting in some house within the walls while his friends and family continued to fight for their freedom. 

From within the barracks, Eren had been on his way back to his room after taking a sleeping pill- when he suddenly heard a noise from outside. It sounded like something made of wood was crushed or broke, maybe slammed onto the ground.  
He went down the hallway and outside, walking around towards the area he had heard the noise. The nights were getting colder and being in the training grounds at this hour was bound to give him a cold if he stayed out too long. 

As he continued his walk, a figure came into view. It didn’t take long for Eren to be able to identify the figure from behind. That small frame, and the hair cut- his captain. He was sitting on his knees, facing what seemed to be a broken barrel. 

“Captain?” Eren rushed over, thinking Levi had been hurt.  
He stops about a foot away from him, not sure if he should go closer. The captain was clearly ignoring him- and probably for good reason after their last encounter. 

But then he saw his body flinch, followed by a sniffle. 

Levi turned around, moving his hands away from his face and looking up at Eren. His eyes were puffy and red, tears continued to flow out of them and he just couldn’t stop shaking.  
There he was, not holding back his tears and looking up at Eren like a kicked puppy. He was actually crying in front of him- just looking up at him as if asking for help. The captain looked so small and frail, tinier than usual because he was sitting on the floor and Eren was standing up looking down at him. 

Eren’s eyes were almost glowing emerald in the dark, wide and staring right down at him. He probably looked pathetic right now, but there wasn’t much he could do. Trying to stop his tears only made them worse.

Levi already had quite bad abandonment issues- not like most of them could be helped. And now he knew that as soon as he went to Hange, she was going to tell him to leave. 

The teen didn’t care about their last interactions anymore, he knelt down in front of him and embraced him. He didn’t care if it showed weakness, he didn’t care if he got a punch in the face, he didn’t care if anyone else saw- and in that moment, it was all he could think of to do.  
He held Levi close to his chest, holding the embrace. The captain didn’t push him away or attack him. He didn’t say anything either and just silently cried against him. 

They just sat there in silence. Eren holding the smaller in his arms as his cries slowly began to calm down. The teen felt his chest tighten from the realization that he was hugging humanity’s strongest- captain Levi. And on top of that, he got to see the side of Levi not many people have seen. It was special and yet, pained him to know how much pain Levi was in. 

What could be so bad to make humanity’s strongest cry?

Was it Erwin’s death? 

“..Captain, are you alright..?” Eren mumbled in the softest tone he could, one of his hands sneaking up and gently starting to pet his hair. 

Levi was too worn out from his episode to even care. He was sad, and tired.  
“Yeah.” He mumbled, enjoying the warmth and comfort he felt from the teen’s embrace. Eren was.. getting bigger, his arms were big enough to completely engulf him- and somehow, he felt relaxed. 

Eren didn’t respond, and instead kept petting his head below him. 

“Before I forget-“ Eren finally broke the silence. “I need to say that I’m sorry about my behavior from a few days ago. I just.. got really heated up.” His frown grew. 

Levi sighed, just leaning against him and listening to his strong heartbeat.  
“It’s fine Eren. I know what I signed up for.” He pulls away, making the teen end the embrace. They sat facing each other now, and it was only then that Eren noticed that Levi was wearing his pajamas- 

It was... adorable. 

Eren like most of the guys just slept shirtless in his underwear but Levi- of course he would have a cute set of pajamas to wear to bed. It was just a plain long sleeve shirt and a plain pair of pajama pants colored in a light grey. At least that was Eren’s guess- even if he could see in the dark, color was another story. 

“Sorry about your shirt.” Levi mumbled as he looked at Eren’s chest- the teen was wearing his usual tattered beige shirt along with his regular white jeans at the moment. And now there was a wet stain mark on the shirt.  
Levi holds out his hand. “I’ll clean it for you.” The thing looked like it needed a wash anyway. 

“..oh- you want me to take it off like, right now?” Eren didn’t know why he felt his face heat up. 

“Do you want to go back to your room wearing a wet shirt?” 

Eren didn’t fight it anymore, so he quickly pulled his shirt over his head and handed it to the captain.  
The shirt was bigger than he imagined, but Eren was also a big guy. Everyone seemed to be growing except Levi himself. 

Levi couldn’t help but admire the muscles he saw on Eren’s frame. He was much bulkier since the last time he saw him. His toned sixpack was almost gleaming under the moonlight.

“Now what do we have here?”  
By the time Eren and Levi could both hear the footsteps, it was too late. Hange stood there looking down at the two with a playful smile whilst holding up a lantern.  
“A broken barrel, and a shirtless Eren..”

“He got his shirt dirty so I’m cleaning it for him.” Levi said before Hange could continue. 

The captain quickly got up on his feet before extending his free hand out to Eren. The teen took it, also noticing how petite the captain’s hand was compared to his. It was slender and smooth, while his own were rough and perfect for punching. 

“That doesn’t explain the mess over here.” Hange eyed the bits of snapped wood. 

“That’s my fault. I’ll clean it up first thing tomorrow. That useless barrel was going to break eventually.” Levi said as he turned his attention away from it. 

“Eren- I need to steal Levi from you for today. Why don’t you go back to your room and get some rest?” She recommended, and the teen nodded before saying goodnight and leaving in a hurry. 

“So what was that all about?” Hange said teasingly as the two started walking back towards the barracks. 

“Eren just saw me and came to apologize.” 

“That was one long apology then! You two were just sitting there hugging for like-“

“I should have known you were spying.. shitty glasses.” The captain just rolled his eyes. 

“I couldn’t help myself! Haha.” She smiled. “So I was thinking we could discuss a little more before heading off to bed. I.. had a few ideas in mind about this situation.” The commander lowered her voice, not wanting anyone else to hear. 

\--------------------

Hange sat back down with Levi around the round table in his room, seeming a bit chirpier than before. She had a lot of time to think of the options Levi had- she was well aware that Levi would most likely want to stay close to what had been his home for years and years. Hange herself didn’t want him wandering off too far whilst being pregnant.

“So, now that I know you’re pregnant.. I can’t have you training people or fighting. Luckily for you, there isn’t a lot of fighting to do at the moment, and I can easily find another person to train the new scouts.” She smiled.  
“My idea was.. I can let you stay. I’m technically commander and I make the rules! The only issue is that you’ll eventually start showing- pregnancies usually become obvious around five months. Before that- it could easily be hidden as extra weight and with baggy clothes. You do want to keep this all under tabs right?” 

Levi nods. “I don’t want anyone knowing I’m pregnant.” 

“I can let you stay for five months depending on how visible the pregnancy is becoming. When it gets obvious.. you might want to start looking for a home in one of the towns not far from here. That way I can still come and see you!” 

The captain seemed relaxed after hearing all that. It sounded like a good plan to him. 

“..I never asked, but.. how are you feeling about this? Do you want this baby?” Hange leans back in her chair, observing Levi carefully. 

“..It’s complicated.” He sighs. “I don’t because it ruins a shit ton of things and will change my life. I do because.. the brat’s Erwin’s.” He looks down at his belly, noticing he had subconsciously began rubbing it. 

It wasn’t like he could get rid of it either, abortions were illegal and not practiced anywhere...  
Anywhere on the surface at least. Nobody cared about what was going on in the undergrounds, which resulted in it becoming the best place for crime and drug dealing.

“I think it would be interesting to see you become a mother!” 

“A mother..” Levi mumbles to himself, thinking. 

Hange could tell gears were turning in her friends head. “..If you do decide that you don’t want the baby-“

“I’m not going to crawling back to that shit hole to break the law.” Levi snapped a little, since that had been the first thing that came to mind when Hange said that. 

“Oh no Levi! That’s not what I was going to say- but I’m glad you’re not considering that. I was going to say there is always the option of putting the baby up for adoption..” Hange tapped her chin, suddenly thinking about how Historia was doing with her orphanage. 

Levi blushes a bit from embarrassment. “I was never considering it.” The embarrassing feeling faded away quite quickly. “My mother had every reason to get rid of a runt like me. She could have if she wanted to, but she didn’t. No matter how shitty life was for her, she chose to keep me and raise me the best she could. So I plan on doing my best for Erwin’s kid, just like how she did.” And the blush was back when Levi realized he rambled off a bit. 

“Aww Leviiii! That’s great!” She reaches over and takes his hand that had been resting on the table. “And I’ll help you every step of the way! I know a thing or two about taking care of kids-“

“If you’re referring to those two Titans you captured as your kids-“ 

“In fact, BIG kids! So shouldn’t I get a bit more credit?” She moved her hand back, glad that Levi was doing ok for now. 

“That reminds me- before you start talking about Titans.. How big do you think my tits are going to get? Because the bandages have been feeling too uncomfortable these days..” Levi looks down at his chest, scratching the bandages underneath from over his shirt. 

Hange chuckles. “Oh you don’t want to use that once you start lactating- it’s going to get more and more uncomfortable. Hmm..” She tapped her chin. “You could wear a regular bra, wear something baggy and keep your cloak on. It’s not like you’re going to be moving around a lot so as long as it’s covered I don’t think anyone will notice.” 

The captain sighs, crossing his arms. “I guess I’ll stop using the bandages when it gets unbearable.”

“You’ll also want to stop taking those expired pills! I’m actually surprised by your test results- it doesn’t seem that the pills affected your health that much.” 

He shrugs. “Must be an Ackerman thing.” 

“Perhaps! That reminds me... the nurse should be aware of this. If a problem arises she can tell us if we’ll need a doctor specializing in pregnancies to take a look at you.” Hange gathers the papers up together, straightening them up on the table. “Is that ok with you?”

“Yeah it’s fine. I need to make sure the kid’s healthy.” He finds himself patting his tummy again. 

Hange couldn’t help but enjoy the sight of Levi being rather happy and content about the pregnancy. She had a feeling that he wouldn’t be too happy about it- but his mother’s actions and the fact that the baby was Erwin’s seem to make him think positively about the pregnancy. 

“What are you smiling at?” 

“Oh nothing! Just- you seemed to have moved on from the shock rather quickly.”

“I can’t be sitting here crying about something I can’t change. The baby is here, and I have to live with it.” Levi had always been like this- he would never actually be over something quickly. The visible emotional piece of it would only surface for a little bit in the peak of the moment.  
On the battlefields, he barely had anytime to cry about every death- so he didn’t. He had to move on and keep going. The only difference this time was that his hormones were going to go against him. 

“But you don’t have to live with it on your own! I can be the auntie!” Hange grinned. 

“I won’t be living on my own, I’ll be here. Doing.... what exactly am I going to be doing if I can’t train the scouts?” Levi tilts his head.

“Hmm.. you could help me with the daily stack of papers! Going through letters, and all that fun. You could also do a lot more cleaning around the place. But I don’t want you to be doing too much cleaning!” 

“I need to learn to cook more food if I’m going to be living on my own with a kid. I could help out in the cafeteria too.” 

“That sounds like a nice idea! As of keeping yourself busy- I want you to take a lot of time to relax too. Maybe read a book or taking a walk.” 

“I’ll consider it.” 

Hange nodded in approval before standing up. “I’ll hand over these papers to the nurse tomorrow. Go sleep, both of you probably need it!” 

Levi smiled a little. “Thank you Hange.” 

\--------------------

For the first time in a while, Levi found himself having a really good sleep that night. He had thought he wouldn’t get any from the stress of finding out he was pregnant, but surprisingly he felt.. fine. 

He slept so well, that he woke up a little later than usual. 

There was a sudden light knock at his door. The captain was in no condition to answer any knocks right now- he was still in his pajamas, his hair a bit of a mess.

The person kept knocking, making Levi groan and hop out of bed. He approached the door, opening it only a crack. 

“Good morning captain.” Eren smiled.

Levi opened the door a little more, raising an eyebrow. “What are you doing here?”

“I wanted to walk with you to breakfast.” He blushes slightly. Throughout all this mess of memories and dreams he’s been having- Levi was the one thing that had been making him happy. 

“You know that’s not your job anymore. I can walk to the cafeteria myself.” 

“I know. I want to.” He glares at him with determined eyes, that screamed ‘I’m not backing down’. Levi know that glare, knew what that shine in his eyes meant. 

It peaked his interest. 

“Give me a few minutes, I need to get dressed.” Levi closed the door in his face and got to work on getting dressed. 

For now, he threw on his uniform. He knew that he could wear his casual clothes now if he wanted to- but he didn’t have the time to be picking out an outfit. Uniform was much easier.  
Once fully dressed, he stepped back out the hallway and walked along side Eren. He kept thinking about last night- how the teen had caught him having his worse breakdown. It was like all the suppressed emotions from all the times he nearly had a breakdown had built up and was released in that moment.

The two walked in an awkward silence, but both of them were secretly happy. Eren kept looking over at his captain, glad that he was spending time with him. 

When they got to the cafeteria, Levi went with Eren to the front to grab a tray. Thankfully there were no sausages for breakfast.  
As Levi started making his way towards his usual spot in the corner-

“Captain, sit with us.” Eren urged him as he stopped in his tracks. 

“Maybe tomorrow. I need to sit alone today.” The captain had a lot to think about. 

“Tomorrow then!” Eren decided on his own as the two parted ways. The brunet sat down at the table with his friends, sitting next to Armin. 

“So you’re on good terms now?” The blonde smiled as he watched Eren eat. 

“Mhm.” He swallowed the piece of bread in his mouth. “I.. found out why Levi hadn’t been eating, but I don’t know if Hange wants me to share it. He’s been having it rough.. I caught him crying last night.” 

The whole table went silent at that for a few seconds. 

“The captain?! Crying?!” Connie seemed shocked. 

“What the fuck makes a guy like him cry?” Jean asked Eren, who shrugged. 

“I don’t know, but whatever it was it had to have been really bad.” Eren frowned. “I want to be there for him.” 

Eren had already gotten a taste of what it was like- Levi, humanity’s strongest, letting himself be vulnerable in front of Eren. Letting him hug him and comfort him.. It was nice. 

“You’ve been really buddy-buddy with him.. Do you have a crush on him or something?” Connie grinned, chuckling as he watched Eren blush. 

“Seriously Connie?!” Jean turns to him. “You JUST realized? This whole entire time- haven’t you seen how this fucker looks at that guy? How he used to follow him around like a lost puppy?” 

“I mean I knew Eren swung that way but I thought he was just scared of him or something!” Now Connie was blushing from embarrassment. 

“You were the only one that didn’t know! It’s so obvious-“ Jean face palmed. 

“So what if I like him?!” Eren snapped a bit. 

“Then you better make your move fast- I’m sure a ton of people have their eyes set on him!” Jean chuckled again, making something in Eren tick. 

A lot of people had their eyes on the captain..

“I am making moves! But I’ll make even more if I have to!” Eren said triumphantly.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Comments are always appreciated, I hope this chapter was to your likening!


	4. A Date

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Levi has no choice but to leave the scouts in a few months, giving Eren not a lot of time left to make moves on the captain.  
> And so, Eren decides that now is the time to ask Levi out on a date..

Eren, Armin, Mikasa, Jean, Connie and Sasha all sat in the waiting room, nervous and wondering what the hell was going on. All members of Levi’s squad had been called here for a quick meeting that was apparently important.

“What do you think it’s about?” Jean mumbled, looking around at his friends for answers. 

Connie leaned against the large table with a sigh, relaxing into his chair. “Maybe it’s a special mission?” 

“Or maybe the captain wants to give us a reward! And maybe it’s some really good food-“ Sasha drooled at the thought. 

“I don’t think it’s food, or a mission. The walls are sealed, and right now the scouts are focusing on clearing out Maria and Shiganshina so that people could start moving back and reclaiming the lands. Once that’s done, I know we are going on an expedition outside the walls.. but apart from that, I don’t know what’s going to happen.” Armin said as he looked over at Eren, who seemed to be deep in thought. 

He was about to ask what the brunet was thinking when the double doors at the front of the room swung open. 

“Hey guys! Sorry we’re late!” Hange chuckled as she walked in with Levi, closing the doors behind them.   
The two sat by the table, the commander sighing of relief. “It’s so nice to sit down- I’ve been running all over the place today!” 

All the squad members looked tense, and Hange was quick to realize that they were probably nervous since they had no idea what she was going to say. 

“Let’s get to it then!” She eyed Levi for a second, who subtly nodded. 

“Your captain Levi here is going on a leave in roughly two and a half months from now. He has an illness and has been told by the doctor to take some time off.” Hange spoke firmly, her words surprising everyone- even Eren, who had known Levi was sick. But the captain seemed completely fine now.. it didn’t make sense. 

“Taking a leave? For how long?” Armin asked, his friends all on edge. 

“We haven’t exactly decided, but it could be anything from one to two years. Levi is going to decide on that when the time comes- but he plans to come back eventually.” Hange smiles. “Right Levi?” 

The captain nodded. “And until then, I need someone else to fill in as captain for me.” 

Everyone was still, the atmosphere in the room only getting more and more uneasy. 

“I’ve discussed this with Hange, and decided that while I’m gone- Jean, you’re going to be the temporary captain.” As soon as Levi said that, all eyes were on Jean. 

The man himself didn’t know if he was supposed to be glad, or terrified. The title as a captain did sound nice, but actually being a captain was a whole other story.   
“..W…Why me?” Jean couldn’t help but ask, and everyone seemed to be wondering the same question. “..Wouldn’t Armin make a better captain?” 

Levi sighed. “I told you, I discussed this with Hange and this was our decision. Armin is a Titan shifter now, and we can’t have him taking the position as captain if he’s going to be a huge ass Titan on the battlefield. He won’t be able to give out orders or make swift decisions. Which is why I chose you.” 

Eren couldn’t help but feel a hint of jealousy, but he completely understood why he would never be able to be captain. Not only was he a Titan shifter, but he was rather hot headed. 

“Captain, what kind of sickness do you have? Is it life threatening?” Eren’s teal blue eyes looked at the smaller man, who sat there unfazed. Eren had no idea how sick Levi was, but from the looks of things he appeared quite the opposite of sick. He was more filled out, his skin looked smooth and glowing in a healthy way. Even his hair looked silky and his skin tone didn’t appear sickly. He didn’t even have dark bags under his eyes- his grey eyes in general appeared to be bright and full of life. 

“It’s not life threatening, but it’s going to leave me unable to fight for quite some time.” Levi spoke with so sign of concern in his tone.   
“Speaking of fighting, so long as those Titan shifters don’t come back and the Marleyans don’t try anything stupid- there shouldn’t be much of it. At best, you’ll be sent on missions to get rid of the Titans roaming within the walls.” Levi shrugged casually. 

Hange straightened her posture. “Of course once people have settled and get Maria and Shinganshina back up and running- our next issue is going to be the Marleyans. They may come back, and we have no idea what they are going to do.” The commander frowned. “As much as I want to handle everything peacefully when the time comes to face Marley.. I have a feeling they aren’t going to listen. BUT hopefully by then Levi will be back!”   
Levi had already made it very clear that he plans on returning- he just didn’t know exactly when quite yet. 

Eren’s mind was still stuck on the fact that the captain would be leaving in two and a half months. That only gave him about ten weeks left with him.

“You’re all dismissed.” And with a wave of Levi’s hand, the teens got up silently and left the room.

Hange leaned back in her chair. “You think Jean can handle it? He already looked mortified at the idea!” 

“He doesn’t have a choice. I’ll be gone soon and he’s the most fitting to be captain out of all of them.” 

“Poor Jean. Haha..” Hange laughs a little. 

“I can’t believe this kid’s been here for two and a half months.” Levi looks down at his belly, only recently noticing the firmness of his abdomen. 

“Yep! And in another two and a half months you will be officially five months pregnant- a bit over the halfway point. From that point on it’s going to get obvious and you’re going to want to lay low and be away from all this.” She waved her arms, gesturing to the barracks. 

“I worry about Eren.” 

That comment made Hange glance over at Levi suspiciously. “Eren? What about him?” 

“The brat’s been under my care since the day he joined the scouts. He’s come far, and I don’t know what the fucks going to happen when I leave. He and Jean are always butting heads and having stupid arguments..” 

“Don’t worry Levi, Eren will be just fine! So long as the Marleyans don’t do anything- your squad will be able to have it easy until you return. You remember we’ve had slow phases in the scouts- like that one time it literally took months for a mission to be approved! So we just sat around doing nothing- Ah.. those days were the best though, I got to work on a lot of personal projects!” Hange said full of excitement as she remembered. 

“The only difference between now and then is that you’ve got two Titan shifters and a shit ton of more enemies who aren’t going to wait for you to go beyond the walls.” Levi grumbled. “Back then, we got to decide when to fight- and the Titan’s would patiently wait for us outside the walls.”

“I know things are different now Levi.” Hange stood up. “For now, you should focus on the pregnancy- stress is never good for the baby.” She smiles softly, watching her friend get up and stretch. 

“I’ll keep the baby safe the best I can.” 

\--------------------

It was another gloomy day when Levi left the barracks to go visit Erwin’s grave. The first time it had rained heavily, the second it was dark and cloudy, and today it was just gloomy and windy. It really seemed like the weather knew his emotions, and somehow the days he would be visiting Erwin ended up dark and sad. 

He kept his cloak on as he entered the graveyard, looking around and enjoying the peaceful quiet. Not a single person- or even a single bird could be seen or heard. Just the whistling of the wind as Levi made his way to Erwin’s grave. 

He had done his usual routine and brought flowers with him, except this time instead of blue roses he brought red ones. The world was already getting colder and miserable as it is- so Levi thought to get something warm and bright. It was the perfect bouquet to give on the day he would announce the new life they had created. 

“..Hey Erwin.” The captain walked up to the grave, kneeling down and setting the flowers down. The ones from last time were...  
His eyes widened, slightly surprised that the blue roses were not withered and dead like the other flowers around them. It had been a while since he put them there.. maybe roses were just strong flowers. 

Either way, he placed the red ones next to the blue ones. Glancing at the stone, he gave it a gentle pat. “You’re going to be a father..” Levi smiled softly, trying not to get as emotional as the other times he visited. 

“I had been feeling like shit for a while now, so about a week or two ago I took some tests the nurse gave me. Hange got to the results, and it said I was pregnant.” He sits down. “So now she knows I don’t have a dick, and I’m nearing my third month of pregnancy.”   
Levi looks at the stone lovingly, as if seeing Erwin sitting right in front of him- or trying to imagine it at least. He wanted to see his reaction- to see his happy smiling face. Erwin had said if the time for peace finally came, or if he had to retire as commander- he would leave the scouts and consider becoming a father. 

Levi had been surprised at how family oriented Erwin had been. But losing his only family at such a young age.. losing his father to a bunch of military pigs- it made Levi’s blood boil.   
Erwin wanted to prove to the world that his father was right, and he did- but it costed him his life. The captain couldn’t help but think of what life would have been like if Erwin had survived. 

He probably would have been happy to find out the truth of the world, but the happiness would be brief. He would have been dragged back to the battlefield to face a darker reality. He wouldn’t have been able to retire or leave the scouts if he wanted to even after fulfilling his dream- because he would have been a Titan shifter.   
He would have been trapped in an eternal war.. and Levi couldn’t help but remember how tired Erwin had looked before he charged into battle. He looked worn out, and then met his eyes and told him thank you.. almost as if he knew he was going to die. Almost as if he planned to die- that he wanted to die. 

Levi would never know, but there was no point in dwelling about the past. Erwin was gone, but he left something very special behind. 

His hand moved to his own belly, rubbing the slight bump a little. “You’ll be a hero to our child Erwin.” Levi could already imagine himself telling the stories about the child’s father- how he lead the mission to seal the walls and made the most progress any commander had ever made.

“I’m going to leave the scouts for a bit to have the little brat. But I promise to come back and to use my skills the best I can.” He continued his conversation with Erwin.   
“I haven’t forgotten about your final orders Erwin. To kill the Beast Titan, and to be strong.” He looks up at the sky, thinking. “I wonder if he’ll come to me or if I’ll have to go to him…But I will kill him Erwin.” He looks back down at the grave. “For now I need to focus on the kid, but I haven’t forgotten. I’ll avenge you and every other soldier that died during that battle.” 

There was a moment of silence. Even the wind seemed to stop for a few seconds. 

“In two months I’ll move into a home not far from here. I’ll come visit you more.” Levi got up after sitting and chatting for a while. He lifted his arms up and stretched before relaxing his shoulders. 

“..I love you Erwin.” Levi gave the grave one last smile as a tear rolled down his cheek. He quickly wiped it away and headed back to the barracks. 

\--------------------

Eren paced around in Armin’s room, tapping his chin and deep in thought as he walked back and forth. He did have a lot of time to be pondering on about what kind of move he should make on his captain. 

“What about a romantic dinner?” Armin suggested, watching his friend pace.

“Where? In the cafeteria?” Eren laughed. 

“There might be some good restaurants in Trost or Stohess!” The blonde seemed determined to help him.

“Maybe? I could try and get a reservation but don’t you need to wear like... fancy clothes to go to those fancy restaurants?” Eren pondered. 

“You’re right.. you’ll need to go out and buy one first if you go with that.” 

“Do you think the captain likes shopping? I could take him out shopping.”

“I don’t really know, but I can see him buying a lot of cleaning supplies and teacups along with some tea!” Armin smiled.

“Oh! I know what the captain would like to do!” He hits his fist on the palm of his hand. “The captain loves the horses, maybe I can take him out to horse ride for a bit in the fields or forest-And then have a picnic!” 

Armin nodded in agreement. “Speaking of horses.. the captain usually goes into the stables around this time if you want to go ask him.” 

“I’ll go do that- wait, Armin, do I look ok?” Eren asked as he straightened out his clothes and made sure his longer hair wasn’t too messy. 

“Yeah, you look good! I’ll see you at dinner then.” The blonde said as he picked up his book again to continue his reading. 

“I’ll see you later Armin!” Eren left the room, running down the hallways and hurrying his way out to the stables.   
Today was a bright and sunny day, not too cold and not too hot with a light breeze refreshing everyone every few seconds. As he ran outside across to the stables, small sandy dust particles floated in the air after his footsteps. He walked up to the large wooden building, hearing the neighing of horses as he approached the long walkway going straight through down the stables from one end to the other. Along the wide path were all the full horse stalls. 

Usually horses were tied in the outdoor stables before missions, but most of the time they were kept in here.

Armin had been right about the captain- he was here, standing in front of his black horse and letting it lick his hand. There was the faintest smile on Levi’s face, which made Eren blush. He would do anything to be the cause of that smile- even if it was a little one.   
He cleared his throat not to startle the captain as he walked up to him. “Captain, it’s a really nice day today.” Eren smiled, happy that the other man’s smile hadn’t disappeared immediately.

“Eren, why are you here? Are you suddenly interested in cleaning the stables?” Because last Levi remembered- Eren hated the stables the most. 

“I can if you’d like me to sir. But I’m actually here because I wanted to ask you something.” The teen stood his ground, appearing confident. 

“What is it?” Levi raised a brow as he looked up at him. His hair seemed to be more neatly kept than the previous days, and he could have sworn he picked up the scent of cologne through the light breeze that had come from Eren’s way. 

“I would you like to go horse riding with me? Whenever you have a break is fine- I’m sure I can request a day off on the same day.” He smiled- and it was the sweetest smile Levi had ever seen. 

He thought for a moment, tapping his booted foot on the ground and sighing. “Hanji instructed me to not train the newbies- so I’m free every day. I’m just here in case I need to take responsibility as captain.” 

It wasn’t a yes, or a no, but to Eren it sounded like he said yes. Why else would he be telling this to him?   
“That’s great! My next day off is in two days- the weather then should be just as nice as today! We could head out around noon and I can take you to this really great place by the huge pond. Maybe we can eat lunch there too.” He beamed. “It’s good to have a change in scenery once in a while- we are always in the crowded, noisy cafeteria when we eat.. so I think it would be nice to eat elsewhere.” 

Levi couldn’t argue with that. Being forced to eat in a room full of sweaty teens and adults were never ideal- no wonder he had never really had a great appetite in there. Not to mention the glaring eyes of some of the people there- he just knew people were watching his every move, talking about him and being at unease because of his presence. 

“I’ll make our lunches then.” He gave Eren a pat on the shoulder. “I’m looking forward to it.” He walks past him, seeming to be in a good mood. He finally had something else to do- a change like this wasn’t bad once in a while. Everyday had gotten to be quite repetitive already- he was really glad that the boy had suggested to do something fun. Levi couldn’t even remember the last time he had done anything fun with someone else outside the barracks. 

Both of them were excited and looking forward to going out. 

\--------------------

Eren had already saddled up his horse, and while he waited he decided to prepare Levi’s horse for him as well. He stood around in the stables, humming happily and wondering of all the possibilities that could happen on his date. 

Would they hold hands? 

Would they kiss? 

Would they go even further..

“You look like you’ve been hung upside down.” Levi said as he stared at the red faced Eren. The teen hadn’t realized his arrival and was startled a bit- he had such quiet feet, he never heard him coming. 

“Captain! I.. prepared the horse for you.” He smiled, gesturing to the black horse. 

“I trust that you did everything right.” Levi mumbled, making sure his shoulder bag was properly strapped to his body before walking the horse out the stables.  
He had yet to get on the horse, and usually had to walk around to the stool that had been set up for shorter scouts- but that stool was gone. He turned his head as his eyes scanned the area for it, but it was nowhere to be seen. 

Eren could already tell what the captain’s distressed look on his face meant- he knew what he was looking for, and he knew exactly where the stool had been put away due to the harsh winds from last night.

But..

“Captain, let me help.” Eren ties his horse to a nearby fence before approaching Levi, who stood beside his horse. 

Normally the captain would have been able to put one foot in the stirrup, use that leg to push himself up and swing the other leg over. But his firm abdomen and lack of exercise really took a toll on him- as well as the slight weight gain.   
He sighed, looking over at the teen. “Go on. Get me up.” Levi instructed, and Eren did exactly that. On the count of three, the brunet had his hands on Levi’s waist and hoisted him up. Giving him a little bit of an extra boost as he swung the other leg over successfully. 

The teen couldn’t help but blush over the fact that his hands were holding Levi’s waist for a second. He had felt rather curvy, and very small. Eren’s big hands almost went all the way around.

“I’ll go get on my horse sir.” Eren ran over to the standing chestnut horse, un-tying the reigns before getting himself on it with ease. 

“Lead the way.” Levi gestured to his front, making Eren hurry to move his horse. 

The walk was very nice and relaxing. Levi got to sit steady on the horse’s back, looking around at the nice nature and enjoying the wonderful weather. He loved how the sun shone through the leaves of the trees as they walked down the path through the forest. How sometimes it would hit his face and give him warmth as he walked along. 

Eren couldn’t help but watch the captain every now and then. To any person, it would have been hard to tell if Levi was enjoying any of this- but Eren could tell. His relaxed muscles, soft face, the lack of dark circles and how his eyes seemed more open. His pupils appeared bigger, and his hold on the reigns were gentle. 

It was almost as if Eren could sense his mood at this point from only a few feet away. The captain was a master at hiding his feelings, but he could no longer hide them from Eren. 

Levi couldn’t help but glance over at Eren from time to time, looking away every time they nearly met each other’s gaze. The way his longer brown hair flowed in the breeze, his sun-kissed skin glowing gold each time a ray of sunlight hit his face. How at ease the Titan shifter looked- Levi found himself wanting to look at his eyes. He wanted to see those teal blue eyes glimmering the whole ocean within them. They were like gems that shone in different colors each time you looked at them- they looked beautiful to Levi. 

“The lake is just up this path.” Eren broke the silence with a faint blush on his cheeks, keeping his eyes forward- or at least trying to. It was nice to be with the captain alone with no one nearby to disturb them. The possibilities were still endless to him, and he wanted to make this the best date ever. This was technically his very first date- he remembered being asked out once or twice by a few girls when he was a cadet still training to join the survey corps. He had declined them of course, since he had no interest in romance or dating at all until recently. He had never been in love till he met Levi.

They continued to ride the horses up the path, and just like Eren said, not far from the path was a huge lake that looked like it could swallow a mountain whole. 

They tied the horses to a tree, and both the chestnut and raven horse began grazing on the grass below their hooves. Eren and Levi went closer to the lake, enjoying the breathtaking view. The lake was nearly the same colors as the teen’s eyes, glimmering under the sun. There was again, the same light breeze from a few days ago, making the bright green trees rustle and the grass dance under them. 

It was just perfect- it could have been a painting. Blue sky, a few white clouds, golden sun, green forest and this open space by the massive lake.

“Captain! Here is a good spot!” Eren smiled and waved at Levi, who walked over and watched as the teen laid out the picnic blanket. Levi hadn’t even noticed Eren had brought that with him-he had probably stuffed it in the saddle bag.

Levi walked over, he took his shoes off and set them aside next to the blanket before sitting down on his folded knees. He put his bag down next to him, opening it and pulling out the bottle of water he had brought with him. He took a few sips from the metal bottle, since he had been thirsty for quite a while.

“Do you like this place?” Eren was still smiling, looking at him like a proud boyfriend. If the teen had the tail of a dog, it would have been wagging back and forth.

Levi put the bottle down before pulling out a medium sized box from his bag. He looks around, his eyes wide and shining. “The last time I saw a place this nice was when I first left the walls- subtracting the roaming titans of course.” He smiled a little.

He smiled-

If Eren hadn’t been happy or proud before, he sure was now. He had made the captain smile! Even if it was a small smile, it was better than nothing. “I’m glad!” 

“I made lunch.” Levi pulled the lid off the box, revealing perfectly cut slices of sandwiches of different kinds all packed tightly together. It looked delicious, making Eren’s mouth water.

“You made them? They look so good!” Eren reached out to grab one, but Levi smacked his hand away.

“Wash your hands first.” The captain said as he used the water he had to wet one of the handkerchief’s he had on him and handed it to Eren. 

“Oh- right..” The teen was embarrassed that he forgot his basic manners of when eating alongside Levi. If there was any food that was to be picked up by hand, he had to wash his hands first. 

Levi cleaned his hands shortly after before putting the damp handkerchiefs in a brown paper bag he had also tucked away in his bag. 

And finally, they began eating. Eren was the first to grab the nearest slice and took the biggest bite. “Mhmmph so good!” He said with his mouthful, earning a scolding glare from Levi. “Sorry-“ He said right after he swallowed. Talking with his mouth full was also something Levi did not approve of.

“Don’t forget to chew you animal.” Levi teased, his tiny mouth taking tiny bites.

“I will captain.” He chuckled as he finished his first slice and moved onto the next, grabbing a third one with his other hand- eager to eat as many of Levi’s handmade sandwiches as he could.

“You’re eating like it’s the end of the world- stupid brat you’ll seriously choke.” Levi commented when his mouth wasn’t full.

“But it’s really good!” Eren said with crumbs on his face. “You would make an amazing husband captain!” He added as he took another huge bite, finishing off the second slice.

“I don’t think I’ll ever sign up to take care of some guy’s sorry ass for the rest of my life-“ Levi said casually.

Eren was encouraged- a guy? So that means Levi swings that way? This was good news for the teen.

“I would marry you sir.” Eren said with confidence, being straight forward as ever.

Nothing but the wind could be heard as Levi looked over at Eren. He didn’t seem the least bit fazed, but there was a moment of silence- or hesitation? The captain looked like he was thinking for a few seconds before responding. “I already told you shit head. I’m not getting married.” Because his heart was still taking time to move on from Erwin. He didn’t even know if he could ever move on from him if he was being honest.

“Well if you ever do consider it.. I’d be happy to marry you.” Eren once again, had that beaming smile on his face- as well as breadcrumbs. 

It was cute in Levi’s eyes, and he found himself blushing and looking away. “Whatever. Just finish your food.” 

The two continued to eat, Eren of course eating twice as much as Levi and then asking for more. While Levi didn’t make any more sandwiches, he did bring an apple or two and gave one to Eren. He ate so much and now he was full of energy.

“Would you like to go swimming captain?” Eren sounded excited.

“In a lake? Disgusting. You know how much shit is in there?” He said as he put the empty box away in his bag.

“But it looks so clean and pretty!” Eren stands up and takes off his shirt, tossing it aside. The captain stared at the well-toned muscles on him- he really was beginning to look more like his Titan form with the longer hair and bigger muscles. 

Going in the lake, however, was going to be a problem, since apart from the lake being dirty Levi couldn’t just strip and jump in. “I’m not going in.”

“Come on captain, it isn’t that bad!” He encouraged as he took off everything else except his boxers.

“N-No.” Levi cursed himself for stuttering.

“Well, why don’t you at least just paddle?” 

“I’ll consider it.”

“I’m going to go for a quick swim! This could be my last chance to enjoy something like this.” And with that, Eren ran straight into the lake. Ignoring how freezing it was against his skin at first as he ventured further.   
Levi sat there, watching the teen swim back and forth, even diving a few times and yelling about nearly catching a fish.

Levi was happy. It was only about two months ago the teen had looked like he was on the verge of falling into a pit of depression, and thankfully he was able to stop himself from falling too deep and made it back up. He may have not been as determined, but he definitely seemed more happier these days. Levi did know why, but he was just glad to see the lifeless feeling disappear from Eren’s eyes. He was glad to see the color return to his skin, his eyes, his hair.. he over all just felt and looked more alive. 

After a few minutes, Levi took his socks off. He put them in his shoes before rolling up his jeans to right under his knees. He got up with a sigh, heading closer to the lake.

Eren’s head poked out of the deeper end as he saw Levi walk up to the edge. He hurried back over, staying in the water and facing Levi. “Decided to join?” Eren smirked.

“Not fully.” The captain seated himself on a rock, dangling his legs off the side where the rock met the water. He dipped the tips of his toes in, flinching at how cold the water felt. He lowered more in until the water was just above his ankles, disliking the coldness.

“Fucking cold.” Levi mumbled, lifting his feet back up a bit.

“You’ll get used to it captain!” Eren stayed knelt in the water in front of him before he experimentally reached out and held his foot.

“What do you think you’re doing brat?” Levi looked down suspiciously. 

“Giving you a foot massage.” Eren smiled. “It will help circulate blood and get you used to the temperature.” 

Eren lowered his captain’s foot back in the water before beginning his massage. Everything about this man was just so small…Even his foot was tiny. However, his ankles seemed a bit.. swollen. Or maybe it was just his imagination. Either way, he could feel Levi relax under his touch as he continued- and that was enough to keep the massage going. 

“Does it feel good?” Eren looked up with those huge puppy eyes.

“I’ve never had a foot massage.” Levi looked away. “It feels good.”

“I’m happy to be the first to give you one!” He then moved onto the other foot, hearing Levi let out a sigh of relief. The captain even closed his eyes, enjoying the warmth of the sun and the coolness of the water- and the feel of those big rough hands being gentle with his feet. Giving him a very needed massage, especially since the pregnancy has been making his ankles and feet swell a bit.

After a while, Levi finally opened his eyes and let himself glance down.   
“..Why are you smiling like that?” The smaller asked the brunet in the lake, who was rubbing his feet.

“Oh- sorry. I just- it’s nice to have moments like this with you captain.” He frowns. “Most of my life has been stressful, and I feel like I’m trapped in this never ending war. At the same time it’s not like I can sit around and do nothing either- I can’t relax and live a happy life knowing I’m not free and that I could be helping out in getting that freedom for everyone.” Eren sighs. “So I’m always fighting, and busy stressing myself out about how to get the freedom I want- that I sometimes forget its these moments that are needed and important. At least that’s what Armin says, and I believe him.”

Eren’s smile returned as he continued. “I always remember the fun times I had when I was a kid, with my friends, with my family.. I even like to remember some of the good times in training and in the survey corps. But these days, I feel like I’ve been lacking in those fun times.. and it almost made me feel.. less grounded, and less alive. Like I was just a walking corpse, waiting for the next instruction to fight.”

Eren met his eyes, blushing. “But when I’m with you.. I’m having fun. You help me forget about the things that make me stressed. You make me happy captain, and spending time with you has helped me realize a lot of things...One of them being that I want to get our freedom so that I can have more times like this with you sir.” 

“…” Levi stared down at him for a while before his expression softened. He moved his hand down and ruffled the brunet’s head, just like how Kenny did when he was a kid. “I wouldn’t mind having more days like this.” 

Eren hummed happily as he finished up the massage. He just got a form of affection from the captain- he couldn’t be happier. 

The two spent a bit more time there- most of it was Levi watching Eren try to catch a fish.   
Levi kept chuckling a little with each time he’d see Eren dive in after a fish like some wild bear. 

“I’ll catch a fish for you captain!” Eren yelled as he looked around for his next target in the lake.

“Keep trying.” Levi crossed his legs, watching.

“If I catch one for you, will you marry me?” Eren looked up, beaming.

The captain shrugged. “Maybe.” He replied jokingly, knowing that Eren could never catch one with his bare hands- the fish were too quick and slippery.

That however, motivated Eren to keep trying until the sun began to set over the forest. 

“Come on brat, we need to head back.” Levi shouted as he got up from the rock, stretching.  
Eren was about to protest but found himself shivering when he came back up to the water. 

He headed out, using the blanket to dry himself down before getting dressed. His boxers were still a bit wet, but the journey back wasn’t that long. 

“Your hair is dripping all over the place.” Levi mumbled, grabbing the towel from him before reaching up and rubbing the towel into his hair. 

Like drying a dog with a towel, Eren just stood there happily.   
Once he was done, he shoved the towel back in Eren’s arms. “And have a shower when you get back. That’s an order.” He swung his bag on his shoulder, making his way to his horse.

“Will do captain!” Eren followed along, considering his date a huge success.

\--------------------

Levi sat in one of the small rooms in the quiet med bay. He uncomfortably shifted on the bed, looking out the window and wondering how much longer he would have to sit here doing nothing. 

“He’ll be here soon.” Hange reassured the smaller, sitting in her own chair across from the bed. 

The captain sighed, and just waited in the room. Apparently the nurse didn’t have a lot of experience with pregnancies and only knew some of the basics. Of course she wouldn’t know- pregnant people don’t stay in the scouts. People don’t even get pregnant here to begin with.

All except Levi. 

So the nurse had been uncomfortable and worried about looking after Levi for the rest of his stay here and had suggested to request a doctor specializing in pregnancy to come in and look at the captain. 

There was a gentle knock at the door.

“Come in.” Levi called out as Hange stood up, moving away from the seat. 

The doctor- a man who looked like he was in his fifties- walked into the room. He greeted the two with a nod, fixing his white coat and holding his clipboard. “Good evening commander Hange, captain Levi. I’m Dr.Novach-“

“Good evening doctor! I’ll uh- be right outside if you need me..!” She gave a nervous thumbs up before leaving the room.

“She’s just really worried.” Levi commented at the doctor, who had looked slightly confused. 

“I see.” The doctor sat on the chair Hange had been sitting on, putting the clipboard on his lap before looking over at Levi. “So, how far along are you?”

“Three months and a few weeks- close to four months now.” Levi frowned, realizing that time was going by faster than he had suspected. 

He had spent most of his time cleaning more than usual, learning how to cook all sorts of different things, and reading up on pregnancies, birth, and childcare. Both Levi and Eren had been busy since that ‘date’, so most of the time all they had was a few minutes a day to chat- which were during those walks to the cafeteria. 

Sometimes he could catch Eren somewhere in the barracks, and they would talk for a bit before going about their way.   
Eren had been working hard on killing Titans within wall Maria, as well as carrying heavy things back and forth to build bases and reconstruct towns in Maria so that the lands would be a little more ready for people to start living on again. 

“And have you had any difficulties so far?” The doctor wrote down how far along Levi was on his clipboard. 

“The morning sickness is calming down, as well as the swelling in my feet. That fucking sucked.” Levi mumbled the last bit. 

“No fainting? No blood?” Dr.Novach wrote more stuff down. 

“No. Everything’s fine.” It wasn’t a lie, and Levi was happy that it wasn’t. 

“Have you begun to lactate yet?”

The captain sighed. “No, but it’s going to start. I can feel it.” He put a hand on his chest. “My tits are sensitive as fuck and getting bigger. I had to stop wearing my binding and now I’m having to work with military bra’s and baggy clothes- and this cloak.” He looked down at his green survey corps cloak. It was fall and getting colder, so he could finally use the excuse that he was cold and wore it all the time. 

“It’s normal for lactation to start around sixteen to twenty two weeks, which is four to five and a half months.” 

“Wonderful.” 

Dr.Novach chuckled as he wrote another thing down. But then he got up and set the clipboard and pen down on the bedside table. 

“I’m going to need to feel your stomach to make sure there is nothing wrong with the baby- so far there is little reason to assume there is, but this is just a precaution.” He said as he put on his gloves. 

“This is a big baby is a huge baby- probably like their father.. just a heads up.” Levi said as he laid down on the bed, lifting his cloak and the baggy long sleeve shirt he wore underneath up to right under his breasts. 

“Oh wow, from the looks of it I would have assumed you were six months.” The doctor smiled before moving his chair closer to the bed.   
He sat down, and the moved his hands onto the captain’s stomach. He felt his sides, the middle, and the upper area as well as the lower- every inch of the bump on his stomach before finally moving his hands away. 

“Everything feels normal. I can say with confidence that you and the baby are doing very well!”

“Good.” Levi pulls his shirt back down, embarrassed. 

“Is this your first time being pregnant?” Dr.Novach sits back in his chair. 

“Yep.” The captain sits up, fixing his cloak.

“Are there any known genetic diseases we should be worried about? Has any of your family members had difficulties with pregnancy?” The doctor takes off his gloves, putting them back in his pocket before picking up the clipboard again. 

“My mother didn’t have any genetic diseases. And from what she told me, the only issue she had with pregnancy was getting money and food for herself. Well.. and me, technically.” Levi begins to fidget with his cloak. 

“And your father?” 

“I don’t know him.” 

“Oh… I apologize.. well, you are doing great so far.” Dr.Novach smiled softly. 

“Well are you going to take some blood or what? Hange said you were going to take some samples back to examine.” Levi rolled up his sleeve. 

\--------------------

As soon as the doctor walked out of the room Levi had been in, Hange goes from leaning against the wall to standing up straight. She looks at the doctor with a worried eye. “Is he-“

“He’s completely fine.” Dr.Novach stepped aside. “After checking him today, I think he’s going to have a healthy baby with no problems.” 

“Thank goodness! Thank you doctor!” Hange sighed of relief before she ran past him and into the room her friend was in. 

“Leviii! You don’t know how relieved I am!” Hange laughed, watching the captain stand up with an annoyed glance. 

“I told you I’ve been taking care of myself and reading a shit ton about pregnancy.” He crossed his arms.

“I know I know, I just wanted to be sure! So did the doctor see your belly?” She had the same look on her face as to when she captured a Titan- It made Levi happy and uncomfortable at the same time.

“He did-“

“So now can I see it?! You showed him, shouldn’t you be brave enough to show your best friend by now?” She teased, judging him. 

“Calm down Hange, I’ll show you but don’t touch it.” He snapped a bit protectively, he wasn’t sure if he fully trusted the scientist side of her.   
He pulled his shirt and cloak up, earning a gasp from his best friend. 

“You’re big!!” She exclaimed happily, squealing. “I can’t wait to meet you and Erwin’s baby!” 

“Shut the fuck up Hange, you’re being loud.” Levi covered her mouth until she calmed down. 

“Sorry sorry, I’m just really excited!”

“I know you are auntie Hange.” He nudged her back, feeling content about the appointment he had today. 

\--------------------

It was a few days later that something happened.

Levi was getting ready for bed, changing in his pajamas and taking off his sports bra. At night, he refused to have anything around his chest due to how uncomfortable it had been getting. He couldn’t even begin to imagine wearing his bandages at this time. They would have been so tight and itchy. 

Thankfully the sports bra did a good job at making his chest look flat. Not as well as before, but it wasn’t like anyone could tell with the baggy sweater and cloak he wore every day. So to him, nighttime was breaktime and his breasts were able to breathe after being strapped all day long.

Levi slipped on the long sleeve top of his pajama set, looking in the mirror. He definitely gained a bit of weight. His body seemed more… curvy, due to the widening hips. Both his stomach and breasts were bigger and round- he just cringed. 

“Erwin you bastard- to think one drop of your cum could do all this to me..” Levi drags himself over to his bed and flops down. He was quite tired from the day, spending a lot of time cleaning the nooks and crannies of his room and a few other rooms.

He had begun to hear murmurs and whispers from scout members about how he was now nothing more than the housewife for the scouts. Always cooking and cleaning… he had overheard a conversation when hanging up the laundry and had to resist the urge to punch the soldiers. He didn’t want to be known as the housewife of the survey corps- but he was able to let the whispers slide after hearing soldiers complimenting is cooking. Apparently the food was much better these days, and people actually looked forward to eating.  
One time, Levi even did some baking and made a bunch of biscuits. He didn’t know what to do with them so left them in the dining hall for everyone to take if they wanted any. Levi was flooded with compliments that day, a lot of men flocked him and said they would pay him to make more.

The attention had Eren crushing his fork in his hand from the other side of the room, but Levi didn’t know that. The teen was happy of course, but also a bit possessive. 

Regardless of pay, Levi kept experimenting and making more different types of things to eat. By now, he was very confident that he would be able to cook for himself and his future child. His goal was to get his baby off of breast milk as soon as possible, and he read that the soonest could be one to two years. Apparently two years was the recommended time period.. and Levi wasn’t too fussed about it. He didn’t mind and wanted to do whatever was healthier for his baby.  
There was always the option of baby formula too- powdered milk. But that was an option he wasn’t considering, since he read that actual milk from the mother was much better and gave the baby the right nutrition to fight off sicknesses and boosts immunity.

Thinking about everything had made Levi even more sleepy, and soon enough, he closed his eyes and drifted off into a deep sleep…

Not even an hour later, Levi awoke to a loud noise and the ground shaking.   
He sat up, rubbing his eyes and hearing the loud sounds of snapping wood and the shouting of a female soldier.

Levi also noticed there was.. light coming from outside. At night. 

He got up and hurried to the window, seeing flames bursting and igniting the lone storage shed that stored all the 3DM gear gas tanks. He could see a woman trying to get thorough the fire and into the shed whilst crying out in agony. 

As captain, it was almost instinct for him to jump in his shoes and run out the door. He headed down the stairs and made it out into the night. Levi was quick to get to the burning shed- he could hear more voices and footsteps from within the barracks- probably the other soldiers noticed and were on their way to check it out too. 

“What the hell are you doing?!” Levi yelled at the girl who was trying to get into the shed.

“My friends are in here!” She cried out, trying to push one of the large wooden beams that had fallen in front of the main double doors of the shed, giving herself splinters. 

“Your friends wouldn’t want you to die.” Levi said in a straightforward tone, making the girl sob. “Get away from there, right now.” He ordered, and the girl nodded and walked away from the shed. 

Levi would have gone running in there and kicked down the wooden beam and the double doors if he could, but he couldn’t risk the baby. 

Then there was a second explosion from within the shed- it sounded like a much smaller one, but it was enough to create another burst of flames and make a ringing sound start in the captain’s ears. 

Eren saw the second explosion knock back the captain and sped up his running. “Captain!” He made it just in time, running up from behind Levi and catching him as he stumbled back. If he had been even a second later the captain would have hit the ground, which wouldn’t have been a huge issue- but he knew the captain was sick and didn’t know what was going on.

He had his arms hooked under Levi’s arms as he fell back. The captain seemed like he could have passed out judging from how limp he was and how he was leaning back against Eren’s chest. “Captain?” The teen wrapped his arms around Levi’s chest-

His eyes widened.

The knock back from the second explosion had Levi feeling a little disoriented as a brief dizziness overcame him. He couldn’t hear much, but he felt someone catch him as his vision became spotty and the ringing got louder. All he could do in that moment was lean back and wait for this dizziness to pass.

Eren thought maybe he was feeling it wrong- he moved his hands to the captain’s chest to make sure he was feeling what he thought he was feeling. He grabbed what felt like two very round breasts, squeezing them multiple times and feeling them as if to double check. His face turned red-

The captain suddenly stood up straight when his dizziness faded, blushing at the fact that he woke up to the teen groping his breasts- and his shirt felt… wet?

Levi turned around, crossing his arms in an attempt to hide it. “Eren! What the hell are you doing just standing there?!” He had come running out of his room forgetting that he didn’t have anything under his pajama shirt.

“S-sorry captain!” Eren left in a hurry to go help the other soldiers who arrived at the scene put out the fires. But he couldn’t stop thinking about it- he knew he felt it. Two soft breasts on his captain’s chest- it couldn’t have been his imagination.

“LEVI!” Hange ran up to her friend, then quickly threw her cloak over him to cover him up a bit. “ARE YOU OK?!” She yelled in his face, checking to see if he had any burns or injuries.

“I’m fine Hange.” 

“What happened?! It took me a while to hear the commotion since I’m on the other side of the barracks- but holy shit!” She looked at the shed that was still spitting fire as the crackling sounds got louder.

“I don’t know- my guess is the gas tanks exploded. There was a girl- she said her friends were in there.” Levi frowned.

“Shit.. Ok, Levi, you go back to your room. I’ll handle it from here.” Hange pat his friend on the shoulder before running off.

The captain followed his commander’s orders painfully, knowing that there was nothing he could do even if did stay to help out. By the time he made it back to his room, his shirt felt even more wet than before. He thought that he could be bleeding- and quickly took the cloak off as well as his shirt. He looked down, seeing no red...

He was now officially lactating. 

“Fucking great.” Levi groaned, feeling gross. “That brat..” He was positive that Eren’s squeezing had triggered it. But by the time he realized Eren was doing it, it was too late. He had gotten out of his hold as quickly as he could- did the teen know now?

He grabbed a dry shirt and some tissues before sitting on his bed. He hoped it would stop soon, because he did not want to go to sleep in a wet shirt or wake up to one either. 

The shouts and panicking of people could be heard as Levi sat there. Eventually the fire started to die down, and it was only when it was completely out that Levi was able to go back to sleep.


	5. First Kiss

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hange thinks it's best for Levi to leave the barracks earlier, and Eren scrambles to figure out a quick way to tell the captain he loves him..

Hange sighed as she folded her hands on her office desk, looking at Levi who sat across from her on the other side. It didn’t take long to figure out the cause of the explosion, and while it was all an accident- it was dangerous. 

“A few days ago some scouts came to my office to complain about a group of recruits smoking within the barracks. I of course told them not to smoke in the barracks, so they went ahead and started smoking in the shed at night.” She sighs. “And that’s how the explosion happened. My guess is the newbies didn’t close the tanks properly, combined with those guys dropping their cigarettes.. the place went up in flames.” 

Levi leans back in his chair, his eye twitching a little. “Why in the shed? They have the whole fucking outside-“ 

“The girl you saw at the explosion, she said they were... having orgies in there too.” Hange looked away uneasily.

“Of fucking course- these new recruits are hopeless.” Levi grumbled, crossing his arms. 

“Thankfully we have one survivor of the explosion, but he will have to be sent home due to his leg being blown off.” She just frowned, looking down at the desk. “The recruits have only been here for about four months.. and we already have deaths, caused by my incompetence..”

“Hange it’s not your fault.” 

“I’m commander, it’s my responsibility to keep the scouts in-tact and safe. I just.. I don’t know if I’m fit for this position..” 

“Well too bad, Erwin left you in charge for a reason. All we can do is learn from this mistake and move forward- that’s what Erwin would want.” Levi snapped, trying to be encouraging to his friend. 

“..Levi..” The commander smiled. “You’re right, which is why I’m going to make sure you will be ready to leave here in a week.” 

The captain thought he might have heard wrong. “What?” 

“After this happened- it made me realize how unsafe it is for you to be here. You’re already showing quite a bit, and I’d rather you be in a less stressful environment that’s safe for both you and the baby than to remain here.” 

Levi knew Hange was right, but he really didn’t want to leave. But it wasn’t like he could go up against the commander. 

“..I’m sorry if this is upsetting, but I can’t help but worry about you being here any longer. Maybe if I was more available- but being commander has made me a busy woman. I’m running all over the place and-“ She was cut off by Levi.

“Having a pregnant person in the barracks is stressing you out. I get it.” The captain looked away. “I’ll go Hange.” He didn’t want to worry her further. 

“Thank you for understanding Levi. I will arrange a quick meeting tomorrow with your squad to announce your early departure.”

\--------------------

Eren couldn’t stop thinking of the night of the explosion- Had it just been his imagination? Or maybe the captain had been wearing really thick clothing? The next day he acted like nothing happened, which only made Eren doubt what he felt even more. He kept thinking back to that as the squad waited in the meeting room, but his thoughts were interrupted when Hange walked in with Levi beside her.

“Sorry for the delay! I just got back from a different meeting.. haha..” Hange said tiredly, scratching the back of her head as she remained standing. The captain stood next to her, averting his gaze and not once looking at Eren.

“I’ll make this quick, it’s been decided that Levi will be leaving in a week from today. His illness is progressing, and after the incident yesterday I feel like it’s better for him to stay away from the barracks.” The commander said professionally, earning a gasp from a few.

“What?! How bad is it?” Eren said as he slammed his hands on the table and got up, looking over at the captain with worry.

“I’ll be fine Eren, sit down.” Levi ordered, and after a moment of silence, he sat once again.

“This means that starting next week, Jean, you’ll be the temporary captain of this squad.”

“Wait- I don’t know if I’m ready or-“ Jean started but was cut off.

“You don’t have a choice.” Levi commented, silencing the teen.

“Don’t worry, you’ll have me to come to if anything goes wrong! But your position as captain should be pretty smooth until Levi returns.” Hange could only hope that Marley wouldn’t attack.

“Thats all I wanted to say!” The commander got up once again. “I’ll also need you guys to help Levi move some of his stuff in the carriages when the time comes, but I’m sure it will be an easy job!”

She then left with the captain without another word- it really was the quickest meeting they have ever had. Hange sounded like she was rushing- 

“Damn by next week you’ll be captain Jean! Hahah!” Connie laughed a little.

“Shut up! Or I’ll make you run laps when I’m captain!” Jean growled at him.

“And then what? Are you going to have me make your tea and clean the floors?” The teen mocked him. “Are you going to become the horse-faced captain Levi?” 

“I just might if you keep talking!” He huffed, crossing his arms. “Anyway! Eren- have you made any more moves yet? Because it sure as hell looks like you’re running out of time.” Jean changed the subject, not wanting to be mocked further.

“I need to do something.” Eren got up. “But I don’t have any days off… and I don’t want to tell him how I feel in the cafeteria where there are a bunch of other people..” He blushed a bit.

“I don’t understand what you like about him Eren, he’s just going to abuse you.” Mikasa finally commented.

“He doesn’t abuse me! Look, the only time he’s hurt me is when words don’t work.” Eren sighed.

Armin then decided to speak up. “Mikasa we’ve already been over this-we should all respect Eren’s feelings and help him out.” He then looks over at Eren. I think it’s a great thing that you’re even feeling romantic attraction! I thought you were going to grow into a grumpy old man.” The blond chuckled.

“Isn’t that what our current captain is?” Connie butted in again, still laughing a bit.

“The captain is actually a really caring person! Maybe if you all paid more attention to him you would realize!” Eren snapped at all of them, getting riled up.

“I understand Eren.” Armin could see his friend’s anger showing and tried to calm him down. “You know.. Now that I think about it, I’m pretty sure Jean’s hurt Eren way more times than the captain.” 

“Well Eren always wanted a fight- and he’ll get one if he asks!” Jean narrowed his eyes at Eren.

“I don’t care what any of you think of captain Levi. I have my heart set on him and I’m not giving up.” Eren finally said before storming out the room. He had to think of his next move, and fast. The date had been a huge success, and he needed to do the next big thing for his captain.

\--------------------

Levi really wasn’t ready for this- but he had to do it. This whole time, he had left Erwin’s room untouched. But the thought of anyone else going in his room and carelessly throwing his stuff into a box was not something Levi was going to let happen. He needed to be the one to clean out his bedroom, and he would be leaving in a few days so he had to do it now.

He took a deep breath before turning the door handle and opening the familiar fancy wooden door. He walked in, closing the door behind him.

Erwin’s scent hit him like a wave. He had been thinking that surely after four and a half months his scent would be gone by now… but he had been so wrong.

The comforting scent of Erwin made the captain’s eyes water. It was not helpful that he was really hormonal right now, and just smelling the room felt like Erwin was just here a few seconds go. It almost felt like he was still alive, like this room was still being used.

He then walked over to the bed, looking down at it and remembering their first and final night together.   
The bed may have had a thin layer of dust covering it, but it was clean underneath and made neatly- Erwin had always been a neat man that kept everything organized.  
Levi remembered the morning of their departure, the commander had rushed to throw the dirty sheets in the washing basket and remade his bed- because Levi had basically commanded him to since it would be disgusting if he didn’t. 

Levi turned away, walking around his bedroom and coming to the closet. He opened it, more of that familiar scent gushing out as the rows of hung clothing came into view.

He chuckled to himself as he pulled out one of the two scouts jackets in the closet. These were not cleaned as often as the dress shirts, and so when he brought it up to his nose, it almost felt as if he was hugging Erwin. He couldn’t stop the tears as held onto the jacket. 

The captain buried his face into it, sobbing quietly as he began to think what his future would have looked like if he had revived Erwin.. Levi couldn’t see his pregnancy making Erwin give up his position as commander. Not to mention if he was a Titan-shifter, he would have had to remain in the survey corps to fight. 

But he could see Erwin being distressed at first about the pregnancy, but then later.. he would be happy. He would have lived at least another nine years to watch his baby be born and grow up. Maybe he would have even married Levi and used the money to get a house anyway. Maybe Erwin would come back every few times a week to the house to see Levi and their child. 

If he was here, Levi would have had strong arms wrapped around him. Comforting him and helping him with the pregnancy- and sure he may have been busy being commander but knowing that this child was going to make him happy was enough for Levi to stay determined.

Now, he would never be able to see the joy that would have been on Erwin’s face when their child was born. 

Thinking of what could have been wasn’t making Levi feel any better, so he tried to get his mind to think of something else- but it was impossible with his scent surrounding him. He kept remembering him, wishing he was here, and hating himself that he had not been strong enough- or fast enough- to protect Erwin.

He knew he couldn’t just stand here and cry forever, so he got to work through his tears. They didn’t stop him from putting his belongings into boxes and dusting off the place. Cleaning every inch thoroughly and making sure not a single item was left behind except the textbooks in the bookshelves. 

One box had Erwin’s clothes and the other had more of his personal items. The blonde commander had always been a man with little belongings. He didn’t care much about having stuff unless it was work related. 

By the time Levi was done, his eyes were still a bit red from crying so much. He had never been one to just sob so much, but this whole entire day of cleaning out Erwin’s room was like removing the last bit of his existence.

Levi had a few of the scouts walking by carry the two boxes back to his room. Once they left, he locked his door from the inside and went over to the box with his clothes. Levi couldn’t see him, couldn’t feel him, and couldn’t hear him… but at least he could smell him. It was the one thing that hadn’t left yet. When he held up his jacket to his nose and closed his eyes, it calmed him to an extent.

It was almost as if he were right there. 

The captain walked over to his bed, laying down on his back and just holding the jacket to his chest.   
“I miss you Erwin.” Levi said with a shaky voice to no one but the ceiling above him. He ended up crying himself to sleep, feeling too depressed to do anything.

\--------------------

Time went by fast, Eren practically had no time to really sit down with the captain alone and have a deep conversation about his feelings. He could only walk in painful silence as he helped out with putting the boxes of Levi’s things into the carriage. 

“That’s the last of it sir!” Sasha exclaimed to the captain as Eren loaded the last box. While she did appreciate the captain, everyone was having dinner right now and she just wanted to-

“Go eat.” Levi ordered.

“Thank you captain!” Sasha happily ran back inside.

Levi stood outside the carriage, being hesitant about all of this. He had come out of the undergrounds and went straight into the survey corps- he had no idea how the life of a commoner would be like on the surface. He had always felt safe and protected in the barracks- since no person would be stupid enough to attack a military base or even sneak in. The place was a hive, so if you hurt one, all the trained soldiers would come out and kill. 

Life as a commoner- life as a street rat, in the undergrounds was not pleasant. People were constantly trying to rob their place, constantly trying to take the home for themselves. There had been multiple incidents of guys sneaking in to try and get to Isabel in an inappropriate matter- of course Levi and Farlan would beat those guys up if they had to. But that was only in the beginning. Overtime, she had learned how to use a knife and how to fight from Levi and became a pro at self-defense. 

“I’m going to join Sasha.” Mikasa said plainly, walking off on her own accord. 

Levi didn’t really care, it was expected of her at this point. She always only did what she wanted, and Levi was the last person she would want to listen to.

“Jean, when you’re captain- watch out for Mikasa. She’s never really been good at following orders.” Levi said as he looked at the man. Connie, Jean, and Eren stood formally in a line side by side, a few feet away from the captain who was standing by the carriage. 

“Yes sir.” Jean would be more than happy to watch out for Mikasa.

“Hange should be here soon.” Levi said as he tapped his foot. That’s what they were all waiting for- the commander was supposed to come and say her goodbyes. Thankfully they had already made future plans for Hange to come visit, so even if she missed waving him off, Levi would see her in a few weeks’ time.

They waited in silence as the sun set, it was a little awkward, but soon enough the commander arrived. She ran over to the four, panting and sweating. 

“I just ran straight out of that meeting- it went on longer than I had expected!” She stood upright, wiping her forehead with the back of her hand. 

“I’m glad you made it.” Levi said thankfully, he actually found himself being really happy that Hange had got here before he decided to step in the carriage and leave.

“Well.. I know I just got here, but I guess it’s.. time for goodbyes.” The commander frowned a little- it always almost like watching a sibling leave the parent’s house for the first time. Hange was going to miss him a lot, but she knew it was for the best.

“I guess it is.” Levi looked up at her. There was a pause before she suddenly embraced him.

The three squad member’s behind her watched with wide eyes as she gave Levi a bear hug.

“Be careful out there, ok Levi?” Hange mumbled a little quietly, still hugging him. She knew Levi had never been much of a people person, and he had trouble not coming off as rude or aggressive- it wasn’t like he was trying to be, to him, it was normal. So she worried, knowing that there would be no one standing beside him to correct him or excuse him- or even stop a fight. Some people didn’t react well to Levi speaking in such a way, but by now- Levi had a reputation of being humanity’s strongest. Surely people would not want to go up against him.

“I will four-eyes.”

“That nickname doesn’t really work anymore, does it?” She chuckled- she had mentioned this many times to Levi, but he still called her four-eyes anyway.

“Just because you can’t use your eye doesn’t mean you don’t have one. It didn’t pop out of your skull did it?” Levi smiled a little, hugging her back.

“Ok ok Mr.Ackerman!” She laughed as they ended the hug. “I’ll come visit soon.. But seriously, be safe!” Hange smiled as she stepped aside, taking a few steps away from Levi.

“Captain..” Eren had to do something.

“What is it Eren.” Levi huffed, looking up at him.

This was his last chance for a while- he didn’t have time to think of a speech, he needed to do something before it was too late. So he walked right up to the captain and hugged him.

Everyone apart from Hange seemed shocked in that moment. 

The teen was quiet, but he wasn’t letting go. He just held him, only now realizing how much weight Levi seemed to gain in his stomach.. and his chest? Eren couldn’t quite tell, but now was not the time to be thinking about his body.

“Will you come back to at least visit?” The teen mumbled, glad that he wasn’t being rejected so far.

“..I will.” Levi gave him a pat on the back. “I need to get going.” 

“Wait- before you go.. I need to say something.” Eren put his hands on the smaller man’s shoulders, looking down into his eyes. 

Levi looked up at him, having no clue as to what he was going to say. He was just focused on the move, and his baby.

Suddenly without any warning, Eren moved his hands on the sides of his captain’s face, pulling him into him as he leaned forward. Their lips crashed hard, leaving the captain frozen for a few seconds with wide eyes. Eren had his eyes closed tight, kissing him deeply with everything he had. Gasps could be heard around him, but he could care less.

There was a moment of hesitation in Levi- the last time he had felt this was when he was with Erwin. An image of him flashed in his mind, and he couldn’t help but imagine him kissing him for a brief second. But this was Eren- who was just a kid.

When that crossed his mind, he was shoving him away in an instant. Eren stumbled back, only watching in heartbreak as Levi wiped his lips with the back of his hand, looking enraged. 

“What the fuck was that?!” Levi growled, his embarrassment turning into fury. But he had mostly been overwhelmed with the amount of love he had felt from Eren.

“It was a kiss-“

“No fucking shit! Why the hell did you do that-“ Levi was yelling, wiping his lips again.

“Because I love you captain.” Eren said with a tremble in his voice.

“You’re just mistaking admiration for love! You’re just a fucking kid-“ Levi spat.

“I’ve thought about that too and realized that my admiration turned in to love!”

“Bullshit. You’re just too much of a shit head to know the difference!” Levi turned around. “Fucking gross..” He got into the carriage and slammed the door shut. And at the sound of the shutting door and Levi commanding the driver to move- the horse started pulling the carriage away.

Levi couldn’t stop thinking about what happened- the balls that kid had never failed to surprise him. But just because Eren had the balls to kiss him, doesn’t mean Levi did. He would never admit it, but at first he felt nothing but pure love coming from Eren- being offered to him.   
But then he remembered Erwin, remembered what happened, and finally his mind had snapped him out of it by telling him Eren was an immature teen.

Eren just stood there, watching the carriage go further and further. His eyes drooping and seeming dark as everything sank in. 

“I can’t believe you just did that!” Connie shouted, trying hard not to chuckle. To think that the captain was kissed by none other than Eren- 

“I’m surprised you’re still alive-“ Jean was still shocked by what happened, unsure what to say. 

Hange just stood there with a frown, feeling bad for Eren- and Levi. She saw what happened, and she saw the troubled look on Levi’s face. It was as if he was internally fighting with himself, which caused him to panic since he was unable to deal with everything at once- and made his anger snap.  
She walked over to Eren, putting a hand on his shoulder. “..Sorry about him Eren. You see.. he’s still trying to get over Erwin’s death. And with the illness and moving- he’s been really stressed.” Hange tried to help, but her hand was batted away. 

“The captain will always see me as just a kid.” He mumbled sadly. “It’s not my fucking fault I was born later.” Eren’s mood got worse and worse as he realized this was something he couldn’t change. This was something he was going to have to live with since birth. In the eyes of the person he loves, he would never be seen as an equal. 

“I’m going to bed.” Eren said plainly before walking off with a depressed look on his face. Leaving everyone just standing outside in silence, trying to process everything that had happened in such a short time period. 

“..Well...shit.” Hange sighed.

\--------------------

The scene was something Levi couldn’t stop thinking about, so he kept himself distracted by setting up his new home. It was a small cottage-like home in the suburbs and stood on its own little hill. Levi hated to admit it, but the house and location was quite similar to Eren’s old home in Shiganshina. 

It only took him a few days to set everything up, and soon enough he was relaxed on the couch by the fire with a book and a cup of tea. It was actually quite nice being away from everything, and he also didn’t have to worry about him or the baby getting hurt either. The neighbors seemed nice, and Hange had made sure the house was not far from the town- where there was a pretty good hospital.

Levi closed his eyes as he finished the tea, setting the book down and leaning back against the couch. Hearing nothing but the crackling of fire and the very distant voices further up the road from his house. One of the neighbors were probably just getting home from work in the town. Most of the people here had jobs either in the town, or in the countryside helping with the farming. 

The captain didn’t need a job, he had a shit ton of money that he made himself over all these years of being on the surface serving the survey corps. He only ever spent his money on tea and cleaning supplies. And then there was that large amount of money Erwin had saved for him. Levi could have bought a mansion next to the king’s palace if he had wanted to- but he knew he needed to save this money, and also wanted to stay close to Hange.

So he got a small house, and got a closet full of plain clothing, and didn’t bother in luxury. His lifestyle remained similar to his life in the barracks. He may not be using fancy plates and wearing posh clothing like the nobles, but he was still happy. The only luxury he say he would have is his teacup sets and tea. 

But in all honesty, Levi was just so relieved to know that life outside the survey corps was nothing like life in the under grounds. He was safe, had food, and had neighbors that welcomed him.

He had actually introduced himself as a female instead of Levi Ackerman humanity’s strongest. No one had to know, and not many even knew his face or remembered it if they had seen it once. 

A family had approached him when he was moving stuff in with the help of the man on the carriage. They asked a few questions, and Levi had already come up with a fake story beforehand. He was a window, who could no longer tolerate being in the old home of his lover who had been killed during a mission since he was in the scouts. So he moved out here for a fresh start- and his fake name was Zoe. 

So now his neighbors knew him as Zoe the widow who lived alone. One couple had been kind enough to offer some of their dinner on Levi’s first night in the town. Of course he checked to make sure it wasn’t poisoned- and it was just fine. Levi was having a really hard time accepting that everyone was nothing but nice here. The complete opposite of what the underground had been. 

Closing his eyes and lost in thought, Levi started to get excited to be seeing Hange again in a few weeks- or a month, he couldn’t remember the exact date. But by then, Levi would be six months pregnant- and he would only have three months to go. He would need to start baby shopping, and that’s exactly what he planned on doing with Hange when she came to visit. 

The commander had promised to not wear her uniform and make the visit more casual to not get attention when they go out shopping. It would be freezing by then anyway, so they could cover up with coats, cloaks and scarves as much as they want. 

Levi sat up, then headed to the small spare room right across the master bedroom. The small room was supposed to be an office room, but Levi was planning on turning it into a nursery. For now he could at least clean the whole place out and baby-proof it.

He didn’t have much else to do except adjust to life here and wait for Hange. He couldn’t wait to show her the place and hear how things have been back in the survey corps.

\--------------------

“Levi!” Hange shouted as she embraced her friend. “I feel like I just said goodbye yesterday! Oh how time flies!” She pat him on the back, glad to see her friend once again.

“Hange shut up- I’m not Levi around here.” The ex-captain said as he pulled her into his home and closed the door.

“So what’s your name then?” She chuckled, following him deeper into his home.

“Zoe.” Levi blushed a little. “It was all I could think of at the time-“

“Awww Levi that’s so cute! Haha!” Hange linked an arm around him, looking down at his stomach.   
“Wow you’re getting huge! Are you sure you aren’t having twins?” She raised a brow curiously.

The captain moved out from the arm around him, blushing a bit. “I hope not, I’ve only been preparing for one brat.” Levi rubbed his swollen belly.

“It’s so weird to see you with huge boobs too!” The commander laughed and poked his side.

“All of this is just weird.” He eyed the bouquet of flowers Hange had been holding in her right hand. “What are those for?”

“Oh!” Hange lifted the batch of flowers up. It was wrapped up neatly and had a set of pink tulips in them. “I almost forgot about these- right. These are from Eren, he asked me to give them to you..” She handed them to Levi, who took it hesitantly. 

“So the brat still hasn’t given up..” Levi mumbled, looking down at the flowers.

Hange sighs. “I don’t really know what he’s thinking these days… but one thing is for sure. He wants your forgiveness. You really mean a lot to him.”

“Then he should have given these to me himself.” He huffed and walked over to the small dining table, setting the flowers down on there.

“That’s my fault- He had originally wanted to go see you and apologize. But I told him I wasn’t sure if you would want him to come here.” Hange said as she briefly remembered the scene.

\--------------------

>>Flashback<<

“Come in!” Hange yelled from behind her office desk as she heard a knock at her door. 

The door swung open, and a still depressed looking Eren walked in. He closed the door behind him gently and headed towards the commander, standing on the other side of her desk.   
“Commander, I want to go apologize to the captain on my next break.” Eren said emotionlessly, waiting for Hange’s reply.

“..I see.” She put her pen down-she had been working on writing some progress reports. “I don’t know if he wants any visitors apart from me showing up right now, so I’ll be sure to ask him on my next visit.” 

Eren just looked down, feeling defeated. The brightness in his eyes were gone, replaced by dullness. “Understood.” The teen turned on his heel to leave.

“Eren wait! Please.. sit down.” Hange gestured to one of the chairs facing her desk. She watched the sad teen take a seat, his shoulders slumped and eyes refusing to look at his commander.  
“Can I be honest Eren?” She asked, and he nodded. 

“I think your timing was bad. What I said that day- it’s all true. Levi is still suffering from losing Erwin.. And keep this between us, but those two- they were romantically involved. That’s why I think he wasn’t really prepared to dive back into romantic love just yet.” She could only imagine the pain Eren had felt after being rejected in such a way. It had affected him greatly, and she could tell.

“Of course they were..” A flash of jealousy hit him as he thought about it. He had always had suspicions, which is why he had never made any obvious moves in the past. As well as the fact that back then, he was still trying to figure out if what he was feeling for the captain really was only admiration. But he eventually realized it was more- he didn’t just like Levi for all his good traits. He didn’t just like him because he was strong and had a good reputation.

He loved every bit of him- He loved how Levi was a clean freak, he loved how he was secretly an animal lover, and he loved that he had a talent in cooking. Before he had seen Levi as some tough hero-like perfect being with no flaws and failed to see he was just like everyone else. A regular human being. He did have emotions, feelings, and felt love. He had insecurities and areas to work on, but despite getting past that fan-boy phase, Eren realized he loved him.

“I think the age difference as well had him fighting with his morals. I know mentally, you are more mature-“ The commander was cut off.

“It doesn’t matter. He’s never not going to see me as a kid.. And I don’t blame him. I’m fifteen and he’s like.. thirty something. How old is the captain?” 

“Uh.. That’s another thing- none of us really know.” Hange chuckled nervously.

Eren’s eyes widened a little. “What?”

She scratched the back of her head. “I’m sure you know he’s from the underground? Apparently down there, it’s almost impossible to keep track of time. Levi doesn’t know what year he was born, all he knows is the date because his mother had overheard the winter festival was happening on the surface.” 

“And actually- I recently- well, a few weeks ago looked at his blood test results. Judging from those, it said that Levi is anywhere between twenty three to thirty as of right now.” She found herself chuckling again. “Levi had told me after I found out that he’s been saying thirty because it was easy to remember! He had also said he’d rather be known as older than younger to avoid any romantic drama- but it seems like he couldn’t escape that! Haha.”   
Hange also had suspicions that Levi had preferred to be known as older because his height put him at a disadvantage when it came down to guessing age. She also thought he just wanted to be closer to Erwin to an extent- he didn’t want to be treated like a young adult and would rather be on equal grounds so that he could be a potential partner to Erwin. His feelings for the previous commander had been so obvious to Hange, but there had been no point of saying it because he would just deny them.

“I don’t feel fifteen.” Eren mumbled quietly, but loud enough for Hange to hear. “Why does it even matter? I know that a good few of the past princesses and princes were getting married to way older people when they were fifteen.” 

“Eren, apart from the morals- Levi is also afraid to love again. That much is obvious.” Hange frowns. “You.. come on to him quite strongly, and that’s something Levi struggles to handle sometimes. You have so much love to give he’s scared of accepting it, because once he does.. there is no going back. When Levi decides he loves you- romantically or not- he loves deeply. I’d say just give it time… He will come around.” 

The teen stayed quiet for a moment, thinking and taking in everything Hange had said. He had never planned on actually giving up, but he know for now he would need to take a big step back and give the captain space. And maybe one day.. it would work out. Eren couldn’t see himself ever not loving the captain.  
“I’ve never felt this way about anyone before- this is all new to me. I apologize for inappropriately kissing the captain like that.” He lowered his head. “I guess I made a newbie mistake..”

“Seriously?? You’ve NEVER been in love until you met Levi??” Hange asked unbelievingly.

Eren just nodded again.

“Wow.. You must really love him! I heard about your little date with Levi, he was talking about it for weeks you know.” Hange smirked.

That made Eren feel a lot better- the only thing is now is he messed up big time, so what if all the good that came out of that date was gone? Did the captain even know it was a date? Eren had never used that term… but he made sure to subtly get his feelings across every now and then throughout the date.

“I’ve said this before, but he really likes you Eren. I’ve never seen Levi take so much interest in a person since the day you got in the survey corps! Well… apart from Erwin, but Levi didn’t have much of a choice back then.” She shrugged.

“I hope the captain will forgive me.. I’d like to see him sometime..” The teen said sadly.

“You know, I can ask him when I go visit him next.” Hange leaned forward, giving Eren a bright smile. 

>>End of Flashback<<

\--------------------

“I’d rather not tell anyone except you my address..”  
He mumbled before going into the kitchen to make some tea. The kitchen, dining room and living room were all just in one big room- so Hange made herself at home in the living room. She knew there was no stopping Levi from making tea for them anyway.

“Poor Eren.” She commented with a sigh. The teen had really picked the hardest person to love. 

Levi just rolled his eyes and continued to boil the kettle. But in reality, he knew he felt something towards the brat. He was like the complete opposite of Erwin, and yet Levi finds himself being drawn in since the very beginning. What began out of curiosity was turning into love once again, and he feared it. 

“Shit-“ Levi flinched, leaning on the kitchen counter. “The fuck was..” He looked down at his stomach, putting a hand on it.

Hange was up and alert as soon as he heard him. She hurried over to his side, moving the kettle away from him. “Levi? Are you ok?!” Unsure of what to do, she just urged him to sit down on the nearest chair for a few seconds.

“No wait.” Levi stopped her, standing up straight and keeping his hand still on his stomach. 

“What is it Levi??” Hange watched him with a wide eye. 

“..I think.. the brat’s just moving around.” He took Hange’s hand and guided it to where he felt it. “See.” 

She did in fact feel movement and sighed of relief. “Geez you scared me!” She blushed a little from awe, keeping her hand there. “This is amazing..” 

“You fucking triggered it didn’t you shitty glasses.” Levi teased, making Hange laugh.

“The baby just wants to see their auntie! Isn’t that right?” She cooed, rubbing the swollen belly. The commander was very happy that Levi trusted her so much and was even letting her feel the baby. 

“..Maybe we should go shopping first and have tea later? It gets dark quickly in the winter. Seasons are still weird as fuck to me.” Levi said as he looked out the window nearest to him. 

“That seems like a good idea!”


End file.
